I'm looking to upgrade my video conferencing setup with lighting. I'd like to get ideas on what lights/lighting kits you use for your video conferencing setup.
What's Your Video Conferencing Lighting Setup?
Lnode modules on 12/07/2021 - 20:05
Comments
I'd use my work light but only if I had room
I have to say that probably, even surprisingly, the best light for a good price is the Elgato Key Light. The soft-light gives nice results, has adjustable brightness as well as adjustable colour temperature so you can match it to your background lighting easier. Also, surprisingly it actually scores a high CRI and is pretty accurate…
I've seen this one - a bit pricey though. Do you use one or two?
I purchased a single unit for the main fill light.
i prefer to hide in the darkness
What sort of work do you do?
I use this LED panel light. It was just under $15 a few months ago.
If you want a larger light you can get this. 3200-5600K adjustable, 96+ CRI.
Wow didn't realise people cared.
I (and many others I work with) just have whatever setup is avilable, meaning people's rooms are dark and/or not always great to see them.
Can't imagine it makes any difference though overall, better off saving money.
Depends on the context/role but I am not particularly impressed by people who don’t have their vc set up sorted by now. Particularly if they are in an important position, like chairing the meeting. It looks very amateur if the person is in the dark, at a weird angle, can’t be heard etc - people have had time to get this stuff sorted.
To be fair I was also unimpressed by people who didn’t have good meeting etiquette pre covid. One person I can think of used to phone into video meetings, didn’t know how to mute their phone (didn’t want to learn), wouldn’t pay attention at would disrupt the whole meeting.
as orgainiser you should mute them
Yeah, unfortunately our in house system didn't have that functionality at the time. We have the capability now :)
Assuming you're a professional speaker? If not then just use the normal light in the room you are in.
It depends on your room set up, but if the only light source is behind you, your face can be poorly lit. I’m not a professional speaker, just a professional and it’s important to me to present well in video meetings.
I just VC from a room with good natural light, but there’s another room which isn’t as well lit that I’d like to VC from so I’m considering getting a small selfie ring light from Kmart https://www.kmart.com.au/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/SearchDis…
Haven’t tried it yet but they have various brightness and tones which I think would be adequate for my needs. I like the look of the clamp one or maybe the 6” table top one, there’s also one that clips onto your phone or laptop.I use something similar to the clamp one, peeking over the top of my monitor - works well with a dimmer and adjustable colour temperature, and I like that it is USB powered.
Careful with the ring lights.
Whenever I'm watching telly and they're interviewing someone with a ring light, it can be really obvious because the reflected ring of light shows in their eyeballs or spectacles.
It's quite distracting.If you could somehow soften the ringlight by hanging a sheet of A4 in front or somehow diffuse the light then I think they're a fairly good and cheap option. Or you could get 2 ring lights and set them up to the left and right so there is no reflection of the light, and also no facial shadows.
reflected ring of light shows in their eyeballs
Years ago this was a desirable technique in portrait photography. Not sure if it still is.
Ah, that’s good to know
you guys switch cameras on?
Nobody cares to the point of ring lights, diffusion, etc. As long as you have a light on and you don't have any windows in shot that are blowing out the light levels then you are fine. Remember your video is about 480p by the time it gets to the other end.
As long as you have a light on and you don't have any windows in shot that are blowing out the light levels then you are fine. Remember your video is about 480p by the time it gets to the other end.
A lower resolution means it's even more important to get the exposure right as there's less detail in your video.
If you happen to have an ideal room setup (bright daylight bulb in a room with white walls and a darker background behind you, and a decent camera), then you could certainly get away with just turning the light on. But not everyone has an ideal setup - some people may have one dim ceiling light behind them and a white wall in the background. The white wall would be brighter than the person's face so the webcam will expose for that, putting the face in shadow. A small light in front of the person will help fill in the shadows.
A simple desk lamp could help, but if the lamp is too bright, it'll blow out features on your face while making the background too dark. That's why a cheap decent LED panel like this, which was $15 a month or two ago, would be ideal.
Of course, whether or not any of this matters depends on who you are in the meeting. If you're there to just listen to other pepole talk, then it doesn't matter if your video is potato or hollywood. But if you're chairing a meeting with potential clients, or a boss addressing staff, you'd probably want to present yourself professionally which means good video and audio.
My point is that in 480p you're not going to see the small details that the jump from say 80% to 100% video quality would bring. If you have terrible lighting conditions in your room then just put a yeelight bulb in a desk lamp and call it a day, slider controlled brightness and colour temp.
My point is that in 480p you're not going to see the small details that the jump from say 80% to 100% video quality would bring.
OK, if it's just a jump from 80% to 100% I'd agree with you. However I've seen many, many people on Zoom and can confidently say the jump for some people's setups can be more like 40% to 100%. At 480p, which is DVD resolution, having proper exposure is more important as there's less resolution to see details.
just put a yeelight bulb in a desk lamp and call it a day
A single light bulb is a point source which will create harsh shadows on your face. It could work if it is dead centre, or if you point the lamp to a white wall behind the camera. Otherwise that cheap LED panel above would give a better image as it's a softer light.
@eug: The Yeelight is a diffused LED bulb, the difference between it and a cheap LED panel would be that extra 20% at the top end that you won't notice. I'd go the panel if I were going to use it for other applications but otherwise IMO I don't think it's worth keeping an extra piece of tech junk laying around for.
The Yeelight is a diffused LED bulb
A single bulb is a point source. The reason why LED panels for video use are large is because the larger the panel is, the softer the light.
the difference between it and a cheap LED panel would be that extra 20% at the top end that you won't notice.
This is subjective and also depends on how good the webcam is.
IMO I don't think it's worth keeping an extra piece of tech junk laying around for.
The same could be said for a wifi LED bulb. ;)
The same could be said for a wifi LED bulb. ;)
Uh no, it also functions as the lamp in my study 😂
Uh no, it also functions as the lamp in my study 😂
That's great, but this discussion isn't about your study specifically. If you already have a desk lamp then there are cheap ways to make that work better (e.g. pointing it towards a white wall behind the camera, diffusing it with a large piece of A4 paper, etc). It depends on what the room and webcam is like.
But not everyone has a desk lamp where they do their conferencing, so they'd have to buy something if they want to improve the video quality. They can either get a desk lamp plus wifi bulb, or something like that $15-28 LED panel linked earlier. The LED panel will work fine as a desk lamp if you get the right mount, but the desk lamp won't work as well as a panel if used as a video light.
Part of my job involves making various people look reasonable over Zoom for conferences, so I've seen quite a variety of different lighting conditions and camera quality. There's a big difference between someone who's well-lit with a good camera angle and someone who's using an iPad with a ceiling light. One looks far more professional than the other.
At the end of the day, if you're just a meeting participant who might ask a question or two then it doesn't really matter. But if you're talking to 500 people for 2 hours, it's less fatiguing for everyone if your image was bright and clear, with good audio.
@eug: Yes but if the person buys a lamp they now also have a lamp in their study instead of something that will sit in a drawer when not in use.
Yes but if the person buys a lamp they now also have a lamp in their study instead of something that will sit in a drawer when not in use.
If they've lived all these years without a desk lamp with a wifi bulb, they didn't actually need one. So they'd be buying "an extra piece of tech junk" anyway.
And as I mentioned, that small LED panel can work as a desk lamp too.
In any case, the point remains - not everyone needs a good lighting setup. But there certainly are people who would benefit from one.
@eug: Except a floor lamp is an item you would use in your day-to-day, for most people a photography lamp is a unitasker they don't need. Also that'd be a whacky lamp, what are you attaching it to?
Except a floor lamp is an item you would use in your day-to-day,
As I mentioned earlier, if they've gone all these years without a desk lamp (when did it change to a floor lamp?), they didn't actually need one.
or most people a photography lamp is a unitasker they don't need.
Yes. Those are the people who don't need a good lighting setup. But there certainly are people who would benefit from one.
Also that'd be a whacky lamp, what are you attaching it to?
You can use a stand like this. The light comes with a ball mount for you to adjust the angle. It sits behind your monitor or laptop so the light peeks out above it. You can point it down towards your desk to use as a desk lamp.
Alternatively you can mount it on a boom arm just like a desk lamp. This arm even comes with a microphone for $26.99.
@eug: Does it matter what kind of lamp it is? The average person will get more value out of a lamp, that’s if they don’t already have one. If any professional speakers doing 500+ attendee VCs on the reg hit me up though I’ll shoot them the link for your light.
If any professional speakers doing 500+ attendee VCs on the reg hit me up though I’ll shoot them the link for your light.
Glad to see you agree that some people do actually need a proper lighting setup. It doesn't even have to be a 500-person conference, a boss addressing their 30 staff members may desire to look more professional. Different workplaces have different levels of professionalism.
@eug: At the end of the day, if you're just a meeting participant who might ask a question or two then it doesn't really matter. But if you're talking to 500 people for 2 hours, it's less fatiguing for everyone if your image was bright and clear, with good audio.
True but lots of people on TV interviews use bad setups and still get more interviews
True but lots of people on TV interviews use bad setups and still get more interviews
That is why they only talk for a few minutes. Do you notice how much better the interviewers in the studio with proper lighting and cameras look compared to those bad remote setups? Imagine if the interviewer in the studio looked like that bad setup, and you were watching them for two hours.
good question!
i think, lots of light helps. so a couple of work lights in the corners of your room, bouncing off walls. Run them on smart switches or or extension cord / powerboards so you can operate with a single switch for simplicity.
issue I've found can be colour temp. At the moment i have a pair of 20w arlec 5000k lights, with a pair of ikea Tradfri adjustable temp lamps which i have set quite warm to balance the colour of the 5000k (smart switches/home automation allow me to enable quickly and get the right temp/brightness on the tradfris). Im sure the CRI of those lights is rubbish (unless CRI is quoted, i figure it will be poor <80 or <70), but ive found it to be fine once the video is compressed and getting shadows right seems to matter more to eyes/webcam feed than colour accuracy.
Ideally in corners of room either side of your face to avoid dark side / light side of your face. bunnings do a 'warm white' work light which is likely a better colour temp than hospital spec 5000k, and im tempted to go get one myself. Warm white is good if you want to skip having a mix of white/warm like i do. Im sure you could go fancy or have ring lights or more specialised gear etc but i liked the fact i could leave the work lights in the corners and keep it simple.