LIGHTS, CAMERA, MEETING!

Create a great look and sound—for remote meetings that matter 

Most of us know that body language and vocal dynamics dramatically impact communication, but for remote meetings we tend to underestimate how much our equipment setup does the same. While there’s no substitute for solid content and strong communication skills, the reality is that your setup also significantly impacts your remote meetings. 

You probably don’t need studio gear for everyday meetings. Being under bright lights for hours every day can be tiring, and a full setup can feel like overkill. Put together a good-enough setup for those meetings, and reserve your great (but still simple) setup for remote meetings in which the quality of your presence really matters.

How does your setup affect your presence? The quality of your lighting, camera, microphone, background, clothing, eye line—all of these affect how others perceive you: can people easily see your face and take cues from your facial expressions, do you seem engaged with the participants, do you look like you’re looking down on (or up to) people, can people easily hear and understand you and sense the depth of your voice, is your background a distraction? These and other details in remote meetings quietly shape how engaged, approachable, and credible people perceive you to be, and they make it easier (or harder) for people to give you good quality attention.

So… once you’ve decided that upgrading makes sense, you have a decision to make: do it yourself or hire a professional.

OPTION: DO IT YOURSELF
If you like being hands-on, and you’d prefer not to hire a professional, you can set up the equipment yourself. Youtube has excellent videos on current equipment and how to use it. With some research, and time to figure out your specific setup, you can create something that works really well. It shouldn’t look like you spent a fortune on a studio (and you don’t need to spend a fortune). Often the best results will be invisible to the people you’re talking with—the effect, while largely subliminal, will nevertheless be significant.

OPTION:  HIRE THE RIGHT PROFESSIONAL 
If you don’t have the time or inclination to research and set this up yourself, and you have the resources, find a professional who knows how to get a GREAT look and sound with a GREAT amount of simplicity. (It’s no good if every time it takes two hours to light you and sort out the sound.) After your high-quality set up is in place for the first time, you should be able to set it up or put everything away in under 5 minutes—in an easily repeatable way. Most professionals who are good at lighting and sound don’t know how to do that. Find one who does. To save you time during the setup process, ask the professional to set up your equipment with someone standing in for you who has skin tones similar to yours—for the lighting conditions that exist (and therefore times of day) when you actually have meetings. Consider asking them to do this at a time that doesn’t interfere with your work—perhaps on a weekend—since the initial setup can take hours. Then have them fine tune the setup when you’re present.

The next thing you’ll need to decide is what to get for your setup:

LIGHTS
The basic lighting design that will help you stand out is a diffused 3-light setup. To get you started, here are three good brands, in order of price (least to most): Neewer, Godox, and Aputure. When I need my setup to look good, I use a combination of these lights and these lights. Whichever lights you choose, it’s important that they’re specific to your space, rather than generic. 

CAMERA
How do you feel when you’re in an in-person meeting with someone who never looks at you? The same dynamics are at play in remote meetings. Get a webcam with a lens that can be positioned so it appears that you are looking at participants when you are looking at their image on your screen. This is so basic, and important. When you ignore this, people you’re talking with may also be ignoring or missing key visual cues from you, or you from them, and your connection can suffer. You may also want a camera with variable depth of field to bring your background more or less into focus (best not to use the background-blur filters on platforms like Zoom that occasionally and distractingly chop off parts of your hair or head).

AUDIO
A good mic can help make the most of your voice. This can have positive subliminal effects on the people listening to you. 

OPTION: UPGRADE TO A CURRENT MAC OR HIGH-END PC
While the quality won’t be as good as a bespoke camera and mic, the built-in camera and mic of a good current Mac and some high-end PCs often provide enough quality to make a real and positive impact on remote meetings. If you go this route, for maximum impact, all of the other items below will still be helpful. 

BACKGROUND
If possible, you’ll want a simple background that’s not all white. A tall (not totally crazy) plant can help, or nicely appointed shelves, or a well-positioned piece of art. Avoid having a sunny window facing the camera (or things in the background that appear to be sprouting out of your head).

CLOTHING
Wear clothing you feel comfortable in that doesn’t have patterns (even fine patterns or stripes). If possible, avoid deep reds or pure white or black (unless that’s the only thing you like to wear). Some color can be appealing and help differentiate you from your background. 

Here are a few other tips to consider:

SELF VIEW 
So many people leave self view on and spend a lot of time looking at themselves during meetings. This is the virtual equivalent of looking at yourself in a mirror during in-person meetings. For some people who leave self view on, this practice increases their self consciousness. For others, it’s distracting. And depending on your camera setup and where your image is, this can also make others feel you’re not with them (and, hey, they’re right to feel that way). Use self view just before your meetings start to make sure your setup is good, but then do everyone a favor and turn it off during your meetings.

INTERNET CONNECTION
You could take a lot of care with all of these areas, but if you’re internet connection goes down, or it becomes unstable, you’ll   —    oh    —      hello?     —     breaking up. If possible, in addition to ensuring you have a good wifi signal, hard wire your computer with an ethernet connection. That way you won’t be at the mercy of the wireless gods.

CHECKLIST
If you’re preparing for an important remote meeting, and you have many things to think about, create a simple cheat sheet so you can let go of unnecessary cognitive load. This will help you be much more present for what really matters. 

FINALLY
If your current setup is resulting in people not really seeing or hearing you well, or it’s making you appear somewhat disengaged, or making it harder for people to give you quality attention or otherwise take you seriously, ultimately there’s good news. Taking the time to hone your setup can dramatically improve your effectiveness in remote meetings. 

Go for it!

 


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