Does anyone here use a decent DSLR camera or the like as a webcam?

Space Monkey

Space Monkey

Space Monkey

Man of Honour
Joined
8 Nov 2007
Posts
16,122
Location
Outer Space
Hey all,

I'm looking at getting something a lot better than my Logitech C920 webcam for meetings over Zoom and wanted some real user input?

I've been doing some reading and watching YT videos and see that the Sony Alpha 6xxx series cameras seem good for this, also saw one from Canon using the EOS RP but that seems to be getting into expensive territory (I know by professional means it's not but for me and my use case it is).

With the Sony I've seen a YT video where he was using the Sigma 16mm 1.4 lense as like him my camera will be desk mounted and not to far from me, it gave him a nice close view and blurred the background as well, so this seems a good match?

So I'm looking for feedback from those that do this and what camera, lenses and equipment you are using, plus any examples to share for me to watch?

I'm also thinking of getting some form of diffused lighting panel that'll attach to the desk and go above the monitor to light me correctly as well? So any recs as well please?

Thanks :)
 
Space Monkey said:
What are Fuji's like for their video quality? They appear to be great for photos but only interested in video.
Click to expand...
Fujifilm video quality is very good, good colour quality out of the box and good set of in built tools.

Only issue is the app you have use to turn it into a web camera is a bit flakey and only available for windows
 
Abraxaz1 said:
Fujifilm video quality is very good, good colour quality out of the box and good set of in built tools.

Only issue is the app you have use to turn it into a web camera is a bit flakey and only available for windows
Click to expand...
Thanks for the confirmation :)

Some are supported by the Elgato Cam Link so if I went Fuji I'd look to get one that's supported and buy the link adapter :)
 
I was looking into this kind of thing recently too, albeit for different use cases. At one point I was considering the Sony ZV-1 as the flip-out screen would be handy, and it also has a built in background blurring feature that works well. It also works with the Cam Link. Ultimately I ruled it out though. For that money, I'd prefer a larger sensor.
 
I started using a very basic DSLR capable of outputting a clean hdmi signal (a canon 250d) last year just as lockdown started. Paired with the awesome canon 50mm f1.8 lens the quality was so good I got, and still get, a lot of comments about it.

At the time it was necessary to use a video capture device like the elgato camlink. Shortly after however canon introduced some free software that did away with the need for a capture device - since I had the capture card though I never tried the software so can't comment on how good / bad it is.

If you are going to get a video capture device there's a shedload of videos on YouTube about an unbranded £15-£20 device - I can highly recommend them while you're figuring out what works.

Since then I've switched to a Sony alpha A7 ii with a 50mm lens and it looks even better.

You do need to set the camera back a bit with a 50mm lens but I find with the full frame sony camera I only need about 2 feet of space to get my head and shoulders in the frame and the bokeh effect is lovely. With the canon 250d I needed about 3.5-4 feet or there'd be an extreme close up of my face. I did try a canon 28mm and a 10mm lens and the field of view on each was immense even when placed very close to me.

The only other thing I'd say is to emphasise the impact of lighting - it can really transform things, even a webcam can be drastically improved with a few strategically placed lights. There are plenty of cheap led ring lights from the usual places that let you control temperature, brightness etc.

I follow the advice given on a ton of YouTube tutorials - one brighter light slightly to one side of my face, one slightly dimmer light on the opposite side of my face and one light behind and raised to illuminate head/shoulders for definition. I throw in a load of RGB lighting too onto the wall behind - clichéd I know but it does look good.
 
[HB]Rugrat said:
I started using a very basic DSLR capable of outputting a clean hdmi signal (a canon 250d) last year just as lockdown started. Paired with the awesome canon 50mm f1.8 lens the quality was so good I got, and still get, a lot of comments about it.

At the time it was necessary to use a video capture device like the elgato camlink. Shortly after however canon introduced some free software that did away with the need for a capture device - since I had the capture card though I never tried the software so can't comment on how good / bad it is.

If you are going to get a video capture device there's a shedload of videos on YouTube about an unbranded £15-£20 device - I can highly recommend them while you're figuring out what works.

Since then I've switched to a Sony alpha A7 ii with a 50mm lens and it looks even better.

You do need to set the camera back a bit with a 50mm lens but I find with the full frame sony camera I only need about 2 feet of space to get my head and shoulders in the frame and the bokeh effect is lovely. With the canon 250d I needed about 3.5-4 feet or there'd be an extreme close up of my face. I did try a canon 28mm and a 10mm lens and the field of view on each was immense even when placed very close to me.

The only other thing I'd say is to emphasise the impact of lighting - it can really transform things, even a webcam can be drastically improved with a few strategically placed lights. There are plenty of cheap led ring lights from the usual places that let you control temperature, brightness etc.

I follow the advice given on a ton of YouTube tutorials - one brighter light slightly to one side of my face, one slightly dimmer light on the opposite side of my face and one light behind and raised to illuminate head/shoulders for definition. I throw in a load of RGB lighting too - clichéd I know but it does look good.
Click to expand...
Excellent info, thanks :)

Yeah I've been watching some YT videos and coming to the same conclusion as you've mentioned about lighting as well, btw what do you use if you don't mind sharing?

I was thinking 2 ring lights in front of me and something behind but not sure what or how yet, plus I was going to light up the wall behind me with some soft RGB and turn off the overhead light (it's a very bright cold LED light and it's literally above my head so it casts shadows on my face etc...)

I'll have a look at the Sony camera you've mentioned. How much better would you say it is than your last camera?

Thanks again :)
 
Yeah the switch from a cropped sensor camera to a full frame one surprised me - I knew it would be better but I wasn't quite expecting such a difference. On the downside, switching from a low-end Canon DSLR (which I've used for 10+ years) to something more complex was a struggle and I always have a nagging feeling that I'm not getting the most out it...

Re: lights, I'm not sure about linking directly as OC sell sort-of-similar products but if you were to search on a big, evil tax-dodging gulag-market for "led ring light with tripod" you'll see a ton of options with slight variations - some have bigger tripods, some have mobile phone mounts in the middle etc but essentially they're all the same thing and I use two of those at slightly different heights. There's a bit of trial and error and personal preference here to find what works for you.

The added advantage with these is that you can plug them into a USB port (or use a mobile charger) and the little tripod they sit on can be folded up so the unit can be easily moved and stored (important for me as I will be using them in different settings).

For the light behind me I just used an old lamp stood on a cheap Ikea stool, with a cheap smart bulb to change temp / brightness :) I quickly realised you can spend an absolute boatload of cash on custom stands and fancy lights but you can achieve "good enough" with stuff you may already have lying around. I've also got some cheap RGB floodlights for filling the walls behind me and usually go with something really vivid and striking.

I did it on the cheap to test out the concept and to keep costs down while I was trying to adjust to launching a new business under lockdown, fully intending to buy "proper" ones if it worked out. The results were good and the cheap lights have just kept on trucking so I've stuck with them.

You probably know this already but don't forget a decent mic as well - I tried a few options such as using a gaming headset (which just didn't look right after going to so much trouble to set up a decent video feed), the camera's own mic, a shotgun mic on the camera etc but in the end went with a fifine USB desktop mic. This is recommended in a lot of youtube videos as well, as it's good quality and very cheap (around £35). I like the idea of playing around with a decent XLR mic set up but that seems to involve a relatively heavy investment for what may be marginal gains. I do like playing with shiny new technical things though so will probably do more in this area in the near future :D
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom