Cam placement
Camgirls need to be familiar with the angles that emphasize their best features; this is crucial.
Cam placement is another important topic when it comes to live streaming as a cam model. It’s equally important in both free chat and private sessions.
Shallow as it sounds, first impressions are made solely on appearance!
That’s especially true in the adult industry.
When users visit your chatroom, you need to put your best face forward and present yourself in a desirable manner.
So here are some guidelines to help you with all that:
Place your camera at or above eye level
Placing the camera at or above eye level is a great way to make a positive impression.
Webcams usually include a clip-on or folding mount for placing them on top of your monitor or TV screen.
Example:
Makes sense, right? After all, these cameras were designed with online meetings in mind.
Should your camera not have a clip on mount, we’re pretty sure that it comes with either a 3/8″ or a 1/4″ tripod screw mounting hole that fits one of these screws:
This means that you can mount these cameras on inexpensive extendable tripods, like this one:
Investing in a tripod at least 5 feet/150 cm tall (when extended) will surely pay off from the start! These tripods will work with webcams, camcorders and DSLR/MILC cameras alike.
Taller, slimmer models should place the camera a few heads above eye level to appear shorter and better proportioned.
Experiment with distance
Different cameras come with different lenses, different lenses have different focal lengths. Because of this, there’s no “one size fits all” type of approach when it comes to distance.
As a rule of thumb, you shouldn’t place your camera closer than 2 feet (60 cm) away from you.
Other than that, it’s up to you to find the right distance from where you look the most attractive.
Do NOT place your camera below eye level
Placing the camera below eye level can make you appear less attractive than you actually are. Unless you’re doing a feet/legs show where the camera is showing your legs or feet exclusively, you should refrain from placing the camera below eye level. But why is that?
It’s because low angles will grossly exaggerate even the minor flaws in your appearance.
If you have a mild double chin that’s barely noticeable from the eye level, and literally unnoticeable from a high angle, a low angle’s gonna make it look like a quadruple chin.
Also, if your facial features are perhaps a little too pronounced (nose, eyebrows, mouth), a low angle will exaggerate them even further in an unflattering way.
There’s another exception to this: plus sized models can get away with placing the camera below eye level, and showing themselves from a low angle. Why? Because just like a high cam placement can make a tall, slim model appear shorter and better proportioned, a plus sized model shown from a lower angle can appear slimmer than she actually is.
Zoom
Utilizing the zoom functionality of your camera in clever ways can make your shows more immersive for your members, so you should use it often.
Different cameras have varying capabilities when it comes to zooming. Some cameras have optical zoom, some cameras are capable of zooming digitally, while other cameras are capable of both.
The rule of thumb here is that the best in terms of quality is optical zoom. Pretty much every single camcorder and DSLR/MILC digital camera has optical zoom.
As for when to use it, that is very situational, but when thinking about this, try to think outside of the box, try thinking with your members’ head.
If you were sitting where he is sitting, what would you like to see happen? Would you go for a quick closeup shot as the show is approaching its climax, or would you zoom out all the way to watch the model’s entire body tremble in excitement?
Using multiple cameras
Using more than one camera during your live shows is of course not mandatory, but it’s something worth considering. You can set up multiple scenes within OBS, and switch between them with a single click.
Alternatively, you can stream multiple camera feeds within one stream, providing your viewers with multiple angles to watch you from at the same time.
Other things to consider when placing your camera:
Freechat
Freechat may be called freechat, but it’s not advisable to give away too much for free. If you’re giving away too much for free, then your guests will have no incentive to tip you or take you private, right?
In terms of cam placement, this means that you should not leave the camera zoomed in on your lady parts for too long, unless you’re being rewarded with tips for doing so.
Mobility
Every once in a while a user will ask you to do certain things that involve moving the camera around, detaching it from the tripod, dragging it across the room etc.
It’s worth being prepared for this in advance.
If you’re using a USB webcam, you should get yourself a USB extension cable at least 10 feet (3m) long. Plug the camera into one end, and then plug the other end into your computer. USB powered devices are quite simple in this regard, the single USB cable they come with supplies them with power while transferring the audio/video signal at the same time.
If you’re using a camcorder, or a DSLR/MILC digital camera, then it gets a little more complicated, because those devices generally use two cables. A power cable (this can be USB as well, many camcorders are USB powered for instance), and a separate audio/video cable (some type of HDMI in most cases).
This means that when you want to move the camera around, you’re gonna have to be mindful of where the cables are, are they getting tangled or not, etc.
The easiest solution for this is to buy a few velcro cable organizers, and wrap them around the two cables. This way the two cables will move as one whenever you’re moving the camera around.
That about sums up the most important things regarding cam placement! Part IV focuses on multicammer models, so make sure you read it here:
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