YouTube Lighting Tips for Beginners: 5-Minute Tutorial

You do not have to be an expert YouTuber to understand how important lighting is to set the tone of the video. An upbeat song cover video may have a bright yellow-ish lighting while a scary video may have a somewhat dull white light.

Every video’s lighting should be spot on. So let us take a look at some of the basic tips on how you can absolutely nail the lighting aspect of your videos.

Familiarise yourself with the basics

As aforementioned, the lighting sets the tone of the video. So ensure that the content and the lighting are congruent with each other.

Other than that, understand the types of lighting that you will have around you. The key light will illuminate you, the host. The fill light will reduce the shadows and lastly the backlight will distinguish you from your background.

Understand the angle of placement

Sit in a naturally brightly lit room for daytime shoots. The distance between you and the window should depend on the intensity of the light. For a golden hour effect, film your video in the first hour after sunrise or the last hour before sunset. Golden hour sets a warm tone to your videos.

Invest in lighting equipments

One can never go wrong with the traditional small LED light panel or ring lights. These are cost effective and easy to set up. Here’s how you can have a cost effective lighting setup for your YouTube videos.

Lamps on your left and right can also work for a night time shoot.

Even it out

If you feel like the lighting only seems to illuminate a part of your face or it is generally uneven, use reflectors. You can DIY a reflector by using an aluminium foil.

Learn how to make your video stand out through your lighting.