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I mean...in fairness I could probably figure out how to get hold of a sheet (seriously, of all the ugly colored sheets and blankets they sell at the local Targe

I mean...in fairness I could probably figure out how to get hold of a sheet (seriously, of all the ugly colored sheets and blankets they sell at the local Target, there isn't a bright green or even blue??) Likewise there are loads of cheap ones on Amazon or I could even get some bright paint and do a wall (or maybe dye my current non-chromakey white sheet background). It's just a matter of suspended/delayed deliveries and state orders to avoid unnecessary travel--including shopping for things like home furnishings. It makes sense. There are plenty of important reasons why I should stay home and Amazon should focus on delivering essentials. I guess it's the definition of being spoiled/privileged that this is what I'm musing about.

bronco21016 7y ago
Been struggling with this myself the last few days! I don’t NEED to go out or order all of this fancy video conferencing equipment for my weekend virtual happy hour but it’s way more fun being locked inside if I do. I was fortunate enough that the previous owners left behind a god-awful teal paint that works amazingly as a ‘blue’ chromakey. For a huge upgrade in camera I’m using the OBS Camera app on iOS which wirelessly beams an NDI stream to my desktop. For lighting I’ve just played around with various lamps from my house. The one thing I did order was a USB microphone because I couldn’t stand the thought of wearing a headset or adding latency with wireless earbuds.
- soylentcola 7y ago
  My lighting is currently a mix of a clamp-on utility light with parchment paper diffuser (key), a window (fill), and a cheap old desk gooseneck lamp pointed at my sheet (I had used it as cheapo outdoor movie screen and now it acts as a clean background for current VTC needs). Cam is the basic 1280x720 Microsoft Lifecam USB webcam I've had for years but is still much better than any laptop cam due to placement flexibility and better optics. OBS lets me color correct and exposes the manual controls for focus, exposure, etc. I did grab a USB headset from work before work-from-home started, but I found it had a frayed wire and isn't any good. Instead I am using my (wired) cell headphones with their integrated mic instead of the USB headset. I dug out an old USB audio interface I had packed away and tried it with a Shure vocal mic, but that led me down another hole of messing with Voicemeeter to tweak EQ and noise reduction because it's really meant to be held right up to your mouth (for singing, etc) and picks up background noise if I have the levels up high enough to use as a desk/stand mic. For the time being I am sticking with the headphone/mic for simplicity's sake. None of this is what I'd use if I had been handed a couple hundred bucks to put together a VTC setup but it's all stuff I had laying around and looks/sounds so much better than everyone who's just using built-in laptop cam/mic/speakers.

bronco21016 7y ago

Been struggling with this myself the last few days! I don’t NEED to go out or order all of this fancy video conferencing equipment for my weekend virtual happy hour but it’s way more fun being locked inside if I do. I was fortunate enough that the previous owners left behind a god-awful teal paint that works amazingly as a ‘blue’ chromakey. For a huge upgrade in camera I’m using the OBS Camera app on iOS which wirelessly beams an NDI stream to my desktop. For lighting I’ve just played around with various lamps from my house. The one thing I did order was a USB microphone because I couldn’t stand the thought of wearing a headset or adding latency with wireless earbuds.

soylentcola 7y ago
My lighting is currently a mix of a clamp-on utility light with parchment paper diffuser (key), a window (fill), and a cheap old desk gooseneck lamp pointed at my sheet (I had used it as cheapo outdoor movie screen and now it acts as a clean background for current VTC needs). Cam is the basic 1280x720 Microsoft Lifecam USB webcam I've had for years but is still much better than any laptop cam due to placement flexibility and better optics. OBS lets me color correct and exposes the manual controls for focus, exposure, etc. I did grab a USB headset from work before work-from-home started, but I found it had a frayed wire and isn't any good. Instead I am using my (wired) cell headphones with their integrated mic instead of the USB headset. I dug out an old USB audio interface I had packed away and tried it with a Shure vocal mic, but that led me down another hole of messing with Voicemeeter to tweak EQ and noise reduction because it's really meant to be held right up to your mouth (for singing, etc) and picks up background noise if I have the levels up high enough to use as a desk/stand mic. For the time being I am sticking with the headphone/mic for simplicity's sake. None of this is what I'd use if I had been handed a couple hundred bucks to put together a VTC setup but it's all stuff I had laying around and looks/sounds so much better than everyone who's just using built-in laptop cam/mic/speakers.