We report results of Raman and ellipsometric spectroscopy of the topological insulators Bi2Te3 and Bi2Se3 grown by molecular beam epitaxy on BaF2 (111) substrates. Surfaces and interfaces of the films are probed by Raman scattering from the front and back sides of the samples, which is possible owing to the transparent substrate. Surface modifications induced by intense illumination with exciting laser light have been detected, with excess tellurium at the surface during and after exposure. We also report data for thin epilayers containing a fractional number of unit cells and or incomplete Bi2Te3 and Bi2Se3 quintuples. We have used spectroellipsometric measurements to obtain response functions and have derived the penetration depth of light in the 1.0-6.5 eV range.