[GrahamS]

The vaseline smeared on a filter is a very old trick that I first used back when God was a boy. There are many other materials that can be positioned in front of the lens, such as lace, splattered paint, nylon mesh, crayon. The smaller the aperture, the more defined the effect. I personally don't like eye-highlights that reflect an object in front of the subject - these shown here have a ghoulish effect. However, eye highlights are essential to a good portrait as without them the image is dead. You might try creating your own "light stops" by precisely drilling a number of concentric holes in a black disk to place in front of your lens. A medium focal length fast prime works best. Drill holes around the circumference and one in the middle. The diameter of the middle hole will have the greatest effect on DOF and softening. Zeiss used to make a portrait lens for plate cameras that was supplied with a set of these stops in various types.