Exploring lighting essentials

What’s the number one way to get great video quality? By the way, the answer isn’t a great camera. It’s actually lighting.

For example, in Figure A1.1, I’m using just the room lights in my office:

Figure A1.1: Room lights

Just by adding one light to the mix, we can vastly improve video quality, as you can see in Figure A1.2:

Figure A1.2: Adding one light to the mix

Now, what about multiple lights? Even better results, as you can see from Figure A1.3:

Figure A1.3: Adding multiple lights

I think you get the idea: lighting makes a huge difference.

Having good lighting is the best way to get a great-quality Zoom video. This could be as simple as sitting by a window for natural light or as complex as a completely professional lit stage. Let’s start simple and go complex.

If you have access to move your laptop and camera next...