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Checklist.video – Research backed tips for great video calls

checklist.video

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Re: Checklist.video – Research backed tips for great video calls

#31

Post by aborowie »

jeztek wrote: post #2

It’s been a whole year since the pandemic started and video calls are still terrible. We've been doing a lot of research into how to make them better and wanted to share what we've learned. We were aiming for something whimsical and easy to read so the tips primarily focus around illustrations that were inspired by IKEA instructions. For people who are interested in delving into the details we put the meat of the adv…

I really like this, a few comments

Why not have the homepage be the checklist? Seems odd to have a page that says click here to see the checklist

Can you send this to the one guy on our Zoom calls who logs in 3 minutes after meeting starts, futzes around with camera/microphone/sound for 5 minutes and then 8 minutes into the call announces he’s online and wants to be filled in on what he missed?

From video production the one takeaway I have is key light vs backlight, webcams like key light and webcams struggle with back light

Re: Checklist.video – Research backed tips for great video calls

#32

Post by swyx »

mdu96 wrote: post #21
swyx wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

noob question - what is the difference between a typical webcam (i have the logitech c925) and a "UVC camera"? i mean i get theres a price difference and i can see the difference, I just don't exactly know what causes it and why i need to pay $1k for it.

hey swyx! a "UVC camera" simply refers to a camera that connects to your device over USB. most "typical webcams" are actually UVC cameras. the ones that are not, are the fancy SLR set-ups that you have to jerry-rig to your computer with multiple connectors and hubs. these are the setups that typically cost at least $1k.

ahhh ok ok. yeah. i want the dslr quality without the fuss and at maybe 1/3 the price tag. haha.

Re: Checklist.video – Research backed tips for great video calls

#33

Post by singold »

tomg wrote: post #29

I would add to the reasons for "Use wired headphones or speakers" is that many (all? not sure) combination "bluetooth headphones with mic" hardware will bottleneck at the bluetooth link. You end up sounding like you're on an old landline (and incoming audio is equally low-fi). I ended up using my bluetooth headphones just for incoming audio; and a dedicated mic on my desk for my speech. It improved both my voice and…

I've also noticed in my case that bluetooth headphones interfere with my laptops wifi, but am not sure why. And the hardware bottleneck makes a lot of sense for me because those headphones didn't interfere when weren't connected to the laptop (the same happens to me with my phone)

Re: Checklist.video – Research backed tips for great video calls

#34

Post by notJim »

stonogo wrote: post #13

It's interesting to me that nobody's really taken the initiative to come out with a high-quality video-only UVC camera yet. I have in mind something like Arducam's offerings* but with autofocus. Even taking a Raspberry Pi high-quality camera and trying to make a webcam out of it is difficult. I have no interest in buying a thousand-dollar mirrorless camera for this purpose, and even less interest in taking Michael Lo…

It seems like cameras with decent sensors start around $500, though most cluster around $700+. I sort of wonder if no one has had the chutzpah to test whether there's a market for $500 webcams. I was personally a little surprised when I went remote three years ago that a "premium" webcam only costs $200, and looks like shit. Based on the number of people with fancy mirrorless setups now, I suspect a $500+ turnkey webcam could do well.

For your specific situation, a used Panasonic G7 and a $20 Chinese capture card would probably work if you're interesting.

Re: Checklist.video – Research backed tips for great video calls

#35

Post by Domenic_S »

mdu96 wrote: post #21
swyx wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

noob question - what is the difference between a typical webcam (i have the logitech c925) and a "UVC camera"? i mean i get theres a price difference and i can see the difference, I just don't exactly know what causes it and why i need to pay $1k for it.

hey swyx! a "UVC camera" simply refers to a camera that connects to your device over USB. most "typical webcams" are actually UVC cameras. the ones that are not, are the fancy SLR set-ups that you have to jerry-rig to your computer with multiple connectors and hubs. these are the setups that typically cost at least $1k.

I use one of those fancy video setups. It consists of a tripod, the camera body & lens, dummy battery for power, and USB-C cable from camera to the mac, no jerry-rigging required. It's a Canon EOS R (a mirrorless camera). Modern cameras have gotten extremely good at this, there's no need for HDMI video cap boxes and so forth anymore.

Re: Checklist.video – Research backed tips for great video calls

#36

Post by mdu96 »

aborowie wrote: post #31
jeztek wrote: post #2

It’s been a whole year since the pandemic started and video calls are still terrible. We've been doing a lot of research into how to make them better and wanted to share what we've learned. We were aiming for something whimsical and easy to read so the tips primarily focus around illustrations that were inspired by IKEA instructions. For people who are interested in delving into the details we put the meat of the adv…

I really like this, a few comments Why not have the homepage be the checklist? Seems odd to have a page that says click here to see the checklist Can you send this to the one guy on our Zoom calls who logs in 3 minutes after meeting starts, futzes around with camera/microphone/sound for 5 minutes and then 8 minutes into the call announces he’s online and wants to be filled in on what he missed? From video production…

Lolol!!! Happy to send this to that guy if you somehow provide us his contact information :) I'm on Twitter here if you wanna DM me: https://www.twitter.com/melissadooo.

And yes, absolutely. Webcams - and actually cameras in general - REALLY struggle with back-lighting. Having a key light pointed at a wall so it's more diffuse and so it can cast a softer glow onto your face is ideal.

Videographers learn about 3-point lighting for ideal lighting situations in film school: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-point_lighting.

Re: Checklist.video – Research backed tips for great video calls

#37

Post by mdu96 »

Domenic_S wrote: post #35
mdu96 wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

hey swyx! a "UVC camera" simply refers to a camera that connects to your device over USB. most "typical webcams" are actually UVC cameras. the ones that are not, are the fancy SLR set-ups that you have to jerry-rig to your computer with multiple connectors and hubs. these are the setups that typically cost at least $1k.

I use one of those fancy video setups. It consists of a tripod, the camera body & lens, dummy battery for power, and USB-C cable from camera to the mac, no jerry-rigging required. It's a Canon EOS R (a mirrorless camera). Modern cameras have gotten extremely good at this, there's no need for HDMI video cap boxes and so forth anymore.

Ooo awesome :) What lens do you use with your EOS R?

Re: Checklist.video – Research backed tips for great video calls

#38

Post by tomhallett »

Wowfunhappy wrote: post #19
CryptoBanker wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can setup Ethernet through your power outlets with something like this https://www.amazon.com/TP-Link-AV600-Powerline-Ethernet-Adap...

Yep, I mentioned those! They're great when they work, but it depends on how your house is wired.

For me: Powerline was better than wifi from the router, but worse then adding a mesh network. Running a cable would have been very expensive (under concrete + outside).

Re: Checklist.video – Research backed tips for great video calls

#39

Post by mackatsol »

mdu96 wrote: post #22
crummy wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apparently you can use Android and iPhones as webcams (e.g. see https://reincubate.com/camo/ ).

have you used these apps before? what's the experience like?

I've tried a few of them on iOS and they have all worked well. Some work over wifi and some over a connected USB cable. I tested these: http://iriun.com (open source, free, works over wifi) https://reincubate.com/camo/ (free, upgrade for more features, works over cable) https://neural.cam/live/ (free, upgrade for more features, works over cable)
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