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A woman at a wooden desk in a small spare bedroom talks to the camera, her face lit softly from the left, a warm lamp behind her and blue dusk at the window.

Fix the light before you buy the camera: home studio setups for creators

YT Lighting is a gear and video-craft guide for people who film themselves at home. Every setup starts with the light, then the camera, mic and edit; the free Light Planner draws yours from your room, window and budget.

Plan your light

Before and after

The same man lit only by the window behind him: his face is dim, flat and gray-blue, and the window is the brightest thing in the frame.

Window only

The window behind him is the brightest thing in the frame, so the camera exposes for it and his face goes flat and gray.

A man in his living-room corner with soft light on his face from the left: his skin is even and warm, his eyes catch the light, and the window behind him keeps its blue.

One soft key

One soft light 45 degrees off the camera, a little above his eyes, and his face is the brightest thing in the frame.

The Light Planner

Light Planner: a lighting diagram for your room

Your room, window and budget in; a top-down diagram with distances and heights, settings and a kit list out. Free.

Plan your light
Light PlannerYT Lighting
WhereAt a desk
WindowBeside you
Plan1 of 8
Plan from above: at a desk, window beside you, with the camera, the key, the fill and the back light placed as the list says.LAMPCAMERA · 2–3 FTKEY · THE WINDOW3–6 FTFILL · 2 FTBACK · 6 FT UPYOU4 FT
Plan · seen from aboveDistances from your face

At a desk, window beside you

The window is your key light: sit side-on to it, with a white reflector on your other side as fill.

  • Camera: on top of the monitor or on a small arm just behind it, lens at eye level, 2 to 3 ft from your face.
  • Key (the window): to your left or right, 3 to 6 ft from you. Angle the desk so the window sits a little in front of you, 45 to 60 degrees off the camera’s line, and the light reaches both eyes. A sheer curtain softens direct sun.
  • Fill: a white reflector or foam board on the side away from the window, 2 ft from you, at face height, tilted toward you.
  • Back light: a small LED panel or tube behind you on the side away from the window, about 6 ft from the floor, aimed at your hair and shoulder, out of frame.

Eight setups: where you film and where the window is

Beside youIn front of youBehind youNo windowAt a deskWindow besideWindow in frontWindow behindNo windowIn the roomWindow besideWindow in frontWindow behindNo window
Each plan: the diagram, the settings, the kit at three budgetsFree

Guides

Every guide says which light is doing the work in the shot, what to try with what you already own, and when the cheaper option is enough.

Guides · 7 sections · 52 guidesAll guides

The Kit

The lights, stands, cameras, mics and software the setups call for, grouped the way you buy them.

Lights

One soft key light does most of the work; add a fill, a back light or color only once the key is right.

Our pick · amaran Halo 100x$169

Modifiers and stands

A bigger, closer source gives softer light, so a modifier often does more for your face than a brighter light would.

Our pick · amaran Octa Dome 90$99

Cameras and webcams

In good light, a 1080p webcam or the phone you already own is enough for most talking-head videos, so buy the camera after the lights.

Best free · CamoFree; paid Pro plan

Microphones and audio

A mic a few inches from your mouth beats a better one across the desk, so placement comes before price.

Our pick · Shure MV7+$279

Backdrops and studio

Sit a few feet in front of whatever is behind you, so the key light falls on you and not on the wall.

Our pick · Westcott X-Drop Pro Backdrop Kit (8′ x 8′)$199.90

Editing and creator software

Four of these cost nothing; pay only when a free tool starts slowing you down.

Best free · DaVinci ResolveFree; Studio $236 once