Preparing for a Presentation Delivered Over Video Conference
There are a lot of advantages to in-person presentations. When we are in the same room, we get to look people in the eye, shake their hands (maybe), and use all of the subtle signals we’ve learned over a lifetime to build a strong, human connection between us and our audience. As wonderful as it is, many people view video conferencing of any kind as a poor substitute for these face to face interactions. We miss the many social signals, like hand motions, tone of voice, small facial expressions that might communicate delight, or skepticism. On a video conference, it’s harder to see whether someone is engaged or imagine what might be going through their mind.
But here we find ourselves, so it makes sense to ask ourselves how we can make the most of the medium. Lately, I’ve been living on video, using it for two-day, all-day training events, social gatherings, contract negotiations, planning sessions, presentations and family events. And while I can’t disagree with many of the complaints I commonly hear about video conferencing, I’m starting to feel like it’s just different, not necessarily worse, nor better, and it’s something that we can get better at.
I think the main thing to keep in mind when designing how you’ll use video conferencing is to optimize first for how others will experience you. Lighting, camera position, environment, audio – allow you to show up for your audience in alignment with your intentions. Since so many of our conventional social signals are lost in video conferences, these technical factors are especially important to pay attention to.
The good news is that it doesn’t take much to make a giant difference in how you show up. Start by setting aside 30 minutes to design how you will show up on video.
Set Goals
Write down five words that describe how you want to show up. Here’s an example: professional, credible, alert, warm, generous. Then, consider five more words that you definitely want to avoid. Let’s say, condescending, disinterested, aloof, resistant, and, intolerant. Again, these are just examples. You make up your own.
Lighting
Next, let’s take care of the lighting. Lighting might be the single most important factor in how you’ll show up. Having the right light means your video camera won’t have to work as hard. People will be able to absorb more of your message because they will read more of the signals that they would otherwise receive in person.
The quality of light matters as much as the amount of light, that is, the direction, size of the source, color temperature, contrast, and spectral balance. One simple trick to get great light is to sit or stand facing a window. North-facing is best. Skylights work pretty well. We’re looking for diffuse, indirect light. Cloudy weather is great for photos or video. Avoid direct sun anywhere in the camera frame.
If it’s night, see if you can replicate the conditions of sitting in front of a window. Try shooting a desk lamp at the wall in front of you, or upward towards the ceiling in front of you. Avoid shining a light directly on your face.
Frame the Scene
Next, arrange the frame of the camera. Start by looking at the frame of the camera without you in it. Arrange the camera so it is level, looking straight at the horizon. You’ll want it to end up about eye level or slightly higher. I like to arrange the camera angle so that the top of the frame is no higher than the top of the wall behind me.
Now is a good time to consider the contents of the frame and what it might subconsciously communicate about you. Is it neat and organized? Overly personal? Noisy or distracting? Would you and your video conferencing participants all be comfortable hanging out together there? Because, that’s kind of what you are doing.
Frame Yourself
Now step into the frame. Stand or sit with your arms relaxed by your side so that the top of your head is just below the top of the image frame and your elbows are just above the bottom of the frame. This allows you to use your hands as you would naturally if you were in person. Try communicating an idea using your voice and hands and watch to see how it looks. If you get your hands too close to the camera, they’ll end up looking much larger than your head, so keep them close to your body or to the side of your body.
One other note here, keep in mind that some systems, including Zoom and Teams, may crop the image that you see here to narrow the image. You may not see everything on the sides of the image if there are a lot of other people in the meeting
Audio
With all the focus on the image you’ll be transmitting over video, remember to check your audio too. These days, my preference is for lapel mics. Boom mics (the kind that attach to a headset and sit near your mouth) are pretty effective, but can introduce pops and whooshes if you end up breathing too close to them. Surprisingly, most built-in laptop microphones seem to work pretty well.
Testing for Effect
Perhaps the most important step is to test your setup. If you are using Zoom, start a meeting and record 30 seconds of yourself speaking. Alternatively, you can try the built-in camera or video apps on your laptop. If you are running Windows 10, hit the Windows key and type “Camera.”
Now, go back to the list of 10 words you wrote down at the beginning of the exercise and ask yourself, or better yet, someone else, how well the audio video setup aligns with your intentions. If you’re not satisfied for some reason, make adjustments, make another 30 second recording, and assess again. How about now?
Troubleshooting
Keep in mind that there are no perfect solutions. Not everyone has the ideal spot for a video conference. Any arrangement you pick is likely going to involve tradeoffs. Nice background, but not as much light as you’d like. Great light, but only between 10am and 11am. Looks great for the other person, but hard for you to see. Just being aware of the ingredients, however, means you may discover that a few easy adjustments can get you much better results than you anticipated.
Here’s are a few examples of setups and some diagnostic comments. See which one your setup matches.
I’m sitting in front of a window, but I’m facing away from it. The camera adjusts to give everyone a great view of what’s outside, but not of me.
This is a comfy way for me to work, on the couch with my laptop in my lap. The lighting isn’t terrible, but having my head so large and low in the screen feels a little awkward.
My laptop is on the table in front of me. I can see the screen well, but this causes the camera to point up at the ceiling.
Here, I’m sitting next to a north-facing window with the camera at eye level. If the camera were tilted down a little more, it might look a little more natural.
Standing works too.
Here’s Lauren’s workspace. She looks awesome on conference calls because she’s facing a window, and her camera is about eye level. She’s got a separate wireless keyboard and a stand for her laptop.
She says the plants add something too.
Anyway, there are no right answers for how you decide to show up on a video call, any more than there are right answers for how you show up in person. It’s a matter of art and awareness. It may seem unfair that all these subtle signals play such a big role in how we are perceived by others, but we have the biology of the human brain to thank for it. Better to understand it and use it to better reach our goals than not.
Let us know if you have any questions. We’re happy to help.