Selfie Light

Why the light sits at the top

Hold a phone at arm's length and the screen is below your face, so a light filling the whole screen comes from underneath. That is the angle used to make people look sinister in films, and it is not what you want on a video call. Keeping the light in the upper half moves the source above the lens, which is where daylight normally comes from and where a face looks like itself.

On a desktop screen the same placement still helps, because it puts the bright area nearer eye level rather than lighting you from your keyboard.

Using it on a phone

1. 1

   Open it on a second device, if you have one: a phone or tablet held above your camera is a better light than the screen you are calling from.

2. 2

   Go full screen, then hold the device slightly above eye level and angle it toward your face.

3. 3

   Start warm. A warmer light usually looks kinder on skin than a cold white one, especially in a room with ordinary bulbs.

4. 4

   Drop the level if the picture looks harsh or your camera starts showing noise on the dark side.

What it can and cannot do

It fills the top of the screen with light-colored pixels, which at arm's length is a useful, soft source. It cannot make your display brighter than the panel's own brightness control allows — the level steps here dim the picture rather than the backlight, so if you need more light, turn the device's brightness up first.

If you want a light with a hole in the middle for the camera, use the Ring Light; for a full panel on a bigger screen, the Zoom Lighting tool.