9 Streaming Lighting Tips for People With Glasses

Streaming is becoming a primary source of income for thousands of people. Whether you want to stream for money or entertainment, there’s one problem standing in your way: your glasses are reflecting the glare towards your viewers. This appearance is tacky enough to send many people away, so how can you fix it?

Some streaming lighting tips for people with glasses include placing a light overhead to prevent glare, making the room brighter to balance the light, and using soft bulbs to stop sharp reflections. You could also use a polarizing filter or consider getting an anti-glare coating on your glasses.

Throughout this article, you’ll also learn the following information about using lights while streaming with glasses:

• Step-by-step instructions to soften the glare or get rid of it entirely
• Products to make the glare less obvious
• Tips to improve your glasses, lights, and more to provide a professional stream

Place Your Light Overhead

One of DIY Video Studio’s best tips is to put the light overhead when you’re streaming. Rather than reflecting off your glasses, the light will brighten the top of your head. It might not be the perfect appearance, but there’s no doubt it’ll stop your glasses from glaring back at your audience.

To fix the high reflection on your head, you can use additional lights (such as natural light from windows) to disperse the light. It’ll make it look much better when you stream. Feel free to lower your camera’s brightness so it doesn’t look overwhelming to your audience. They’ll appreciate the extra steps you took to improve the experience.

Make the Room Brighter To Contrast the Light

If your streaming light is glaring at your glasses, you need to do something to make it less sharp. The overall brightness will dull the reflection, making it much less noticeable. Most people who wear glasses notice the light reflecting from their computer. Lower your PC’s brightness, open the windows, and balance the light sources.

It’d be best to have multiple colors, but nothing too sharp or solid. Soft lights are almost always the top choice of successful streamers. Consider contrasting daylight white from the window with a pale yellow glow from another angle. You could put a light overhead, as mentioned in the previous section. Ensure it doesn’t create a halo on your head and hair, though.

Consider Soft Light Sources

Soft lights, such as daylight white and glowing yellow, are excellent choices. They bring life to the room without glaring or reflecting off of your glasses. It’s a simple adjustment you can make, but we’ll cover a handful of suggestions throughout this page to soften your lighting setup. You don’t have to spend much money to see a dramatic difference.

When you use soft lights, you’ll have to decide the distance from the bulb to your streaming setup. The goal is to highlight yourself and your screen if you’re streaming anything from a computer. Don’t use soft lights that highlight your keyboard, headset, and so on. They distract viewers from looking at the content you’re producing.

Check out this article if you are considering ring lights for streaming.

Always Look in the Right Direction

Minor adjustments make a world of difference, including the direction you’re looking. If you look right at the light source, your glasses will reflect it at the camera. Instead, place the light overhead and to the right or left, depending on which way you’re looking. For example, if you’re sitting in a chair and looking to the left, place the light to the right.

This simple contrast will stop the light from bouncing off your glasses. Some streamers recommend looking down at a slight angle or lowering your glasses down your nose about half of an inch (1.27 cm). You’d be surprised how big of a change it can make!

Apply a Polarizing Filter When Streaming

According to No Film School, polarizing effects can reduce or prevent glare from coming off your glasses. Whether you’re wearing sunglasses or seeing glasses, the last thing you want is a bright glare. Fortunately, most recording programs and cameras have visual effects you can use to change everything during production.

The most crucial part of using polarizing filters is to ensure the light reflects at a 56-degree angle. Mess with the angle when you’re not streaming so you can provide optimal performance when you’re on the camera. These filters can contrast colors, so also check how your outfit looks before you stream.

Use a Light Diffuser

The Neewer Soft White Diffuser Sock is a top-notch example of a highly-effective, budget-friendly light diffuser that gets the job done. It’s perfect for seven-inch (17.78-cm) lights, but there are dozens of options you can look through. As long as it’s big enough to cover the whole bulb, you’re good to go.

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Light diffusers disperse the light while dulling the sharpness to prevent heavy glares and sharp brightness. You can use them to create a soft light without changing the bulb. Note that they’re not ideal for lights with low lumens, but you wouldn’t be dealing with this problem if you had a low-lumen bulb.

Point the Light at the Wall Instead of Your Face

If you don’t want to purchase new equipment or place the light overhead, you could point it at the wall instead of your face. Brightening the wall with a light source will prevent your glasses from reflecting at the camera. Furthermore, it’ll let you see the PC or camera to know what you’re doing.

Brightening the background by pointing the light at the wall instead of yourself is a great way to bring attention to posters, memorabilia, and other belongings in the background. Many popular streamers use this technique to highlight sales, posters, and more content without directly addressing it.

Broaden Soft Lights for Better Effects

As you could imagine, soft lights are almost always the king of the streaming industry. Take it a step further by getting an adjustable light source. If you can change the width and sharpness, you’ll have complete control over the intensity and coverage. This process will let you play with the lights until you have the best setup for your glasses.

DSLR Video Shooter breaks this tactic down in a video titled “How to Light People With Glasses and Avoid Glare” on YouTube. You can view the video guide here:

Ask About Glare Coatings for Your Glasses

If all else fails, you can contact your eye doctor to ask about getting an anti-glare coating. They often cost a bit of cash, but it’s well worth the investment. You’ll enjoy the benefits when you’re streaming, but it also improves your vision while driving at night or when in buildings with ultra-bright lights.

Next time you’re up for a new pair of glasses, you could inquire about the coating. Most offices will upgrade a current pair, but it’s slightly more expensive to do it after you bought the glasses since they have to send them back. You also void the chance to get a bundle price.

Conclusion

Now that you know how to stream with lights without reflecting off your glasses, you can upgrade your streaming room. Light reflections reduce the quality, causing viewers to leave the stream. By implementing the suggestions found throughout this page, you can drastically improve the user’s experience.

Here’s a quick recap of the post:

• Wide, soft lights brighten the room without glaring your glasses.
• Various filters reduce the reflection’s intensity.
• Consider applying a light diffuser to limit the sharpness of each light.
• Anti-glare coatings can make your glasses look much better when you’re streaming.

Sources

• DIY Video Studio: How to Avoid Glare on Glasses in Zoom Video
• No Film School: How to Solve the Glare Issue When Lighting People with Glasses
• Reddit: Lighting and Glasses
• YouTube: How to Light People With Glasses and Avoid Glare