Today I want to go into detail about my overhead craft desk video lighting set up. This may be helpful for other Stampin’ Up! demonstrators and other people who do creative overhead filming or streaming. One of the things I have noticed is that as Demonstrators we don’t share as much about the ‘how’. Therefore I wanted to do more sharing in this way when I started my new blog. These are the types of posts I would often search for in the early days of being a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator, so after 16 years I hope I can share some useful tips.

In full transparency, some of the links in this post may contain affiliate links. This means if you choose to make make a purchase using these links, I will receive a small commission. This is at at no expense to you. As a small business owner, this is how I able to spend time on creating content like this. I will only ever recommend products and services that I personally use. These are things that make my life as a demonstrator easier or improve my content or customer service.

My Crafting Space

Firstly, for context, here is a photo of my crafting space. The oak look table tops, table legs and Alex draws are all from Ikea. I have them set up in an L shape in front of some big windows for natural light. One space is for desk work, one for photography and video and one for creating. This post is going to focus on the overhead craft desk video lighting set up. If you have any other questions, please contact me and I will be happy to chat.

For my set up, it needed it to be reasonably simple. I also needed it to be portable. This is so I could quickly move it out the way if I needed to use the space. I also didn’t want it to spoil the overall aesthetic of my room so I didn’t want any overhead beams .

I shoot my videos and photos on an iPhone 14 Pro, and edit using iMovie on my Macbook Pro.

Overhead Phone Mount

Like many other demonstrators I use the ARKON HD8RV29 Kitchen Desk Table Stand to hold my iPhone while filming. I love this is adjustable in height and angle, and the stand can easily be moved around. I have found that sometimes I need to place something on the stand to completely stabilise it. This is in case I knock it during streaming. My Mini Stampin’ Cut & Emboss does the trick though!.

Photography Background

Next, I use a photographic backdrop on the desk top. I purchased a set of double sided ones so I can change them up if I want to. They arrive rolled up and are quite easy to flatten. Additionally use a little blue tac on the corners to keep it flat. These ones are the Ankoola Double Sided Photography Backdrops. They are really durable and you can wipe them clean too as they are coated.

Overhead Lights

Next for my lights. I have used various lights over the years. After some consultation and research earlier this year, purchased new lights in early July and I totally LOVE them. The lights are Elgato Key Light Air – Professional 1400 lumens Desk Light for Streaming, Broadcasting, Home Office and Video Conferencing. They are what actually prompted me to write this post and recommend these lights to other people. If you want to invest in good quality portable lights, I recommend these for sure. They are so solid and very good quality for the price. The stand on these lights does not need any extra support at all.

I love how much brightness (1400 Lumens) these lights throw out, but in a diffuse way. You could just use one, but I decided on two at a slight angle each side of the filming area. This gives me much more workable space. I find I get way less glare with these than I have on any other lights I have used. There is still a little bit on shiny objects like stamp cases but I can generally get a good angle.

I also really like the portability, heavy base and the built in cord control that keeps my desk looking neater. My son works in sound and lighting and he said this is a really well respected brand as well. These lights also connect wirelessly to your PC, Mac, Android device or iPhone. This means you can adjust brightness and color via the Control Center app, and get real-time onscreen feedback. I use this on my iPhone and find it really handy while filming. Here’s a screenshot from my phone.

Other Recommendations

Finally, here are some other things I use on my desktop that you might be interested in:

• The bamboo desk storage units at the very back are from K Mart Australia and are super cheap!
• My laptop stand is the Twelve South Curve Stand for Macbook which was a gift from my son.
• I find having the 60W USB Power Hub next to my Arkon stand really handy. Filming sucks a lot of power from your phone and you can keep it connected to power this way. Twist it around the cable around the outstretched arm to keep the cable out the way while filming.

Save this Idea for Later

Here’s a pin that you can use to save this post for later.

I hope you have found this post on overhead craft desk video lighting set-up for Stampin’ Up! Demonstrators and other creatives informative. If you have any questions or topic ideas for future posts, please contact me and let me know.

Have a great week,

Claire

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