It is time to set up your video conference light. Video conference is increasingly conducted especially when people have to work at home due to the COVID-19. It features plenty of benefits for productivity and quality of life. However, it does badly in making you look good in the frame. Generally, when the lighting is poor, you will appear exhausted, casual or even sick. And today we will offer some tips to you on how to set up the light for good looking.
Fastest way to light video conference: face a window to sit and make the most of natural light
The fast and free way to improve the lighting for video interview is to make use of natural lights. We all know that sunshine is beneficial to our health especially when we need to stay inside for a long time. Besides that, it plays a significant role in the way you show up in a video conferencing.
All the hard edges will be filled by the sunlight from the window. So it looks like that you are in “overcast day”, which is perfect in photography. However, the light from outside is varied by the time, so your results will also vary based on the weather condition and time of day.
But pay attention, although this tip is able to help, it may not make you look as professional as an executive.
Cheapest way to have lighting setup: use daylight LED bulbs instead of regular ones
If you want to spend some money improving the conference lighting but don’t feel like spending a lot on it, replacing your lightbulbs will be a good choice. You should ensure that all of the bulbs are of one stripe so as to get identical color temperature no matter where you are. Here Daylight LED light is a perfect choice to work as video conference light offering maximum warmth and lumen.
In addition, you can use LED bulbs in both your overhead light and your desk light for video conference. In this way, the lighting will fill the room totally and illuminate the wall behind you. And there won’t be harsh lighting to make you appear tired out meanwhile your face and body will be lit up properly.
Best light for laptop video conference: ring light or panel light recommended
But what if you want to look like a really professional executive during the Zoom call? A ring light or panel one come to the stage. They are commonly used by YouTubers, TikTok creators, and other video creators because they are definitely useful.
In most cases, ring light is a favored product in beauty videos and TikTok. It can also be an affordable choice for your video conference and calls with high CRI. When you use the video conference ring light, remember to angle it a bit off to the side or above, or to place it a little farther. Otherwise, it will cause a glare due to the reflection in eyes and glasses.
For more professional lighting, you are recommended to use light panel for video conference. It is made up of 105 beads and features a CRI of 95+. There is a dimmer switch for you to control the brightness from 100% to 0. It is an RGB LED light, made of red, green, blue and additional white and yellow lights, so you can adjust the color to match different kinds of conferences. Moreover, the lightweight design and magnetic back enable it to attach to metal products easily. In this way, you can use the video conference light for laptop, desktop computer, etc. and get perfect illumination wherever you are.
More tricks to use video conference light to improve your looking
There are some tips to utilize for better looking. We sum up some principles for you to follow.
1. No matter what light source you opt for in your video conference, you are supposed to aim it at your face. That is, make sure the source is not from the side or rear. If you don’t, your face will be poorly lit, or worse, you will be reduced to a silhouette.
2. Have lights come from around you. This is the best video conference light but is rarely a choice for homeworkers. If you do want to build a home set-up for your video conference, make sure they are pointing directly down at you and are situated behind your camera. To generate pleasing depth and shadow, tilt your main key light to face you at an angle.
[For more information about setting up the lights, check the article why is three point lighting used?]
3. Attain the proper angles. There's nothing more annoying than having the camera pointed right at your nose, and no amount of nice laptop video conference light can help you avoid it. If you need more height, prop up your laptop with books or use a laptop stand. Also, instead of looking at yourself or the person you're speaking to, attempt to gaze into the camera. This makes you have a more natural interaction with the person on the other end.
Frequently asked questions
1. Why choose LED video conference light?
LED is the newest technology. Compared to incandescent lights, it gains many advantages. It is smaller in size and much more durable. In addition, it is energy efficient since it has longer lifetime and can operate at much lower voltages but offer good brightness.
All of these characteristics make them great ingredients for video conference light. It is bright, offering enough lighting to your face and body. What’s more, the brightness and color temperature are adjustable, so you can use it as you like to fit your needs. In general, it is lightweight, so it can easily attach to laptop, desktop. If there is no enough desk space, you can also mount it on a tabletop stand.
2. How do I make my LED panel light a soft light?
When you use the LED light panel for video conference, making it a soft light is good for your looking. The normal way is to use a softbox umbrella, diffuser or reflector. But this is not so feasible and convenient if you are use it for video conference. So here is a simple solution.
If there is a white wall behind your office desk, the change will be quite easy. It takes only two steps. Set the light to the maximum brightness and then turn it to face the wall.
In this way, the white wall will become the source. A large area of the wall reflects the light, making you illuminated by light from various directions. This is what we call soft light. It helps smooth the shadows and hide wrinkles so you will look energetic in the frame.
It also doesn’t matter when your wall is colorful. Just cover the wall by a large sheet of white paper or other white materials, and you can use the same trick as above.