When a customer enters your room, YOU are the first person they see. And, they see you as framed by your webcam, set against whatever background you’ve chosen, BUT they also see you (literally) by how you’ve lit your room. Ask any top cam model and they will tell you that great lighting is a necessity if you want to attract more customers to spend time in your room. Imagine if you, as a customer, entered a model’s room and that model was poorly lit — the shadows, the darkness, the blur. How would you feel? Would you want to tip that model? Would you want to take that model to private? How does the quality of a model’s lighting effect his or her live show? In this short article, we’ll dive into the basic, but incredibly effective 3-light setup, and hopefully, get you lit up better than you’ve ever been lit up before.
BEAUTY IS IN THE EYE OF THE PREVIEW!
Before you go live, really look at what you’re broadcasting. In all honesty, do you think you’re properly lit? Are your best features being accentuated? Are your lights too bright? Too dim? Sometimes, just by simply previewing yourself before you broadcast can solve the problem of poor lighting. It might be that you need one more lamp or to turn on an overhead light and your problem will be solved. Or, it could be that your light is way, way too bright against your skin. Turn it away from you. Tweak your light sources so you look just right.
THREE POINT LIGHTING, GET TO KNOW IT!
Becoming a lighting expert is easier than you might think, but it does require a bit of thought. That said, it’s worth it. Let’s dive in.
Key Light: This light is the key that unlocks your beauty to shine. It’s your strongest light. Position it behind the camera. It faces toward you and it’s best to keep it at a 45 degree angle from you. That is, if you’re sitting facing your camera, you can place your key light in front of you and to the right. Experiment with how far it should be from you, because every light is different. Remember, key light equals BRIGHT.
Fill Light: This light “fills in” the shadows created by the key light. Position it behind your computer and to the left. That is, if you’re sitting facing the camera, you can place your fill light in front of you and to the right. Just like the key light, experiment with how far it should be from you. Every light is different. Don’t make the fill light as bright as the key light. That’s important. If you do this, there’s a good chance it’ll distort how your skin looks on cam.
Back Light: This light is best when kept behind you and out of the frame. This means, that the light should not be visible in your webcam. An overhead light would work fine. Or, a lamp on a high table. The purpose of this light is to light what’s behind you. It makes you appear more 3-D. It makes you come to life. This light should also be the dimmest of the three lights.
Test out these lighting tips in your room. Take some time to make things look and feel right. It could mean the difference between a good night and a GREAT night.
Got it? Great!
LIGHT UP YOUR CAM
Experiment with your lighting setup and you’ll reap the rewards! Truly. Proper lighting can make or break a broadcast. The better you light up your space, the more customers are going to want to step into your room and engage you in conversation. And, the better you’ll appear. Customers will want to see you. Make them want you.
Once you find a great lighting setup that suits your broadcast space, play with it until you know it works well. Once you get to that point, you can work on experimenting with different locations around your broadcast space. Maybe you want to perform in the kitchen or in the shower. Maybe you want to do a show in the living room. Wherever you go, you’ll be able to properly get yourself lit and lit well. As broadcast possibilities expand so will your knowledge of how to light yourself.
Remember, your time on cam is a performance. You are the star and it’s important that you take the time to make your room into the best room on the site. Of course, your performance is key, but great lighting will always be “key” to making you light up like a sky full of shimmering stars.
So, onward, cam models! Keep doing what you’re doing and let’s all work to get better.
If you can understand what your customers want, and if you’re comfortable with the fantasy (and if it adheres to our rules & regulations), then go for the experience and be that fantasy that your customers want to see. You could also start your night (or day) by putting yourself in a fantasy situation. For example, you could start your broadcast wearing a new outfit or costume (a doctor or nurse, a teacher, a dominatrix, etc). Greet your customers from the point of view as whatever role you’re playing. Draw them into your fantasy and keep them there. When customers get turned on, I mean, really turned on, they lose track of the outside world. It’s like when someone plays a video game that they love. Watch that person lose track of the outside world — hours pass and they had no idea. If you can successfully draw that customer into your fantasy, they won’t want to leave. The fantasy will consume them and that’s always a good thing. They’ll want more. They’ll come back for more. Try it! 
What is a silent room? Well, a silent room is a room where no one is engaging with you, where you are not engaging with your fans, and where, in general, nothing much is really going on. Maybe you’ve had the experience of visiting other models’ cam rooms and, upon entering, seen that no one is chatting, no one is talking. Maybe the model is gazing off into space. Or, maybe he or she is checking their cell phone or yawning, etc. Ask yourself, is this a good look for a cam model? Is this type of behavior going to attract customers? Do you think customers will be impressed by this behavior? Professionally, we at Guide to Camming, tend to think not. 
Music helps. Music can help you open yourself up on cam. It can also help lighten the mood of your room. Try creating a playlist that makes you feel sexy and confident and compliments your persona on cam. What would you call such a playlist? Would the first song be one that energizes the room or would it be something personal and inward-facing? The playlist you create or choose should suit your style. Show customers who you are by how you express yourself. Personally, I like to choose music that gets me in an absolutely hyped-up mood and makes me feel sexy so that my camming persona never drops. 
It’s a common adage in America to, “Dress for the job you want, not the one you have.” We also say, “Clothes make the (wo)man.” Or, who can forget the lyrics that a classic ZZ Top song, “Every girls’ crazy about a sharp dressed man.” What’s pretty self-evident by examining these three quotations is the idea that people notice our clothes. If we show up to a formal party wearing a jeans and a dirty T-shirt, people will take notice. Similarly, if we go on a date dressed to perfection with a style that fits our personality, people will notice. And it’s this latter, positive swing, that we wish to focus on with these three little words: “Dress for success.” 
Ultimately, your customer is going to go with whichever model best fits what they are looking for at that exact moment. Of course, it might be you. However, it might be someone else. The only thing that you can do to catch that fish is to tailor your profile pic to represent the best version of yourself that you wish to display to potential customers. In this business you can’t please everyone, but you can control your niche, your image, your visual appeal. And the message in bringing this to your conscious awareness is that we live in a world of image. Controlling and shaping your profile image is of the utmost importance to how your fans will view you.
Your profile picture is the first “hook” that entices customers to your room. Imagine you see two images side-by-side. One image is a poorly lit selfie that barely displays the model’s face or whatever appealing side of their body they are trying to express through the framing of the pic. The other profile picture is a professionally shot image that shows a tailored and carefully crafted image of the model in HD quality, a stunning representation of what the model is offering. Which pic do you think that you would click on? Think about it.
Your image speaks volumes about you. It can even determine your “quality” as a model and can even decide, in a customer’s mind, if you are a top model, that is, a model who is worthy of top pay. Always, be aware of how you are portraying yourself. If you want to be paid like a professional model, you need to carry and represent yourself as one. Remember, customers don’t know that you are new. Selfies are great for social media. But here you are a genuine model. 
