How to Set up a Camera for XSplit Broadcaster
Last Updated on September 21, 2019 by Michael Brockbank
A lot of broadcasters found greater success by making sure their faces were included in a live stream or video. Luckily, adding a camera for XSplit Broadcaster is as easy as adding the game’s auto-detect feature. So, how do you do it?
Well first of all, you need a camera. A lot of people rely heavily on a simple web cam. Others will invest tons of money for state-of-the-art equipment.
However, you don’t really need anything fancy to get started streaming right now.[template id=”145″]
Setting up the Camera for XSplit Broadcaster
I am going to assume you have XSplit Broadcaster installed and running. I’m also going to assume you have a camera installed on your computer system.
For instance, I am using a Logitech C920. It’s an HD camera and works amazingly well. In fact, a lot of popular streamers use this camera and the C930 version during a live video on Twitch.
Adding Your Camera
Click the option on the bottom left to “Add source.”
Choose the “Devices” option from the list.
Go to “Video” and select your camera.
Resizing the Camera Feed
Now that you have the camera for XSplit Broadcaster feeding into the layout, you might want to resize it. This is completely up to how you want the video to show whether you’ve live on Twitch or uploading to YouTube.
Grab the video by the corner and reshape it to your needs.
Since I have the Extra Life plugin installed, I am going to justify the camera to sit above it. That way, it has a nice and even symmetry to its appearance.
XSplit Broadcaster has a built-in tool for snapping elements together. This way, you can reshape the camera to fit perfectly over top, under or next to images you add.
Just remember that this snap feature will affect everything you add to your scene. So if you have a ton of different elements, resizing will snap to any one of them.
Making Sure Camera is First
XSplit uses a hierarchy for what elements are visible. The top item is first and anything below it in the source window is behind it. Which means you probably want the camera to be first in the list.
By default, adding it to your sources should place it on the top of the source window. But what if you want something to overlap the image?
A lot of designers, including myself, use overlay graphics to accentuate the video feed or surround it with a stylish border.
In any case, you can easily move the camera in the hierarchy of visibility.
Click to highlight the camera if it isn’t already.
Now move the camera’s position by clicking the down arrow. This will move the camera source one position down in the hierarchy.
You can also drag-and-drop the camera source where you want it in the list.
Just make sure it’s not behind your game or other larger graphic. You could inadvertently cover the video feed, which would make the camera pointless.
No one would see you.
Lock the Camera Position
If you place the camera in a specific location and don’t want it to move, you can lock it down. This way, you don’t accidentally move it from the perfect position on your screen.
Make sure you have the camera selected and click the lock icon.
Now you can move the hierarchy of the camera up and down in the source list. However, you cannot modify the shape or location of the video feed in XSplit Broadcaster’s layout.
This is exceptionally useful if you want to keep things in your video or live stream at a specific location at all times.
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Don’t Forget Proper Lighting
As you can see from my example images, half of my face is pretty dark. This is because of the time of day it is and the number of windows in my current office.
This is one of the biggest reasons why I have a string of lights behind my monitor as well as choosing to stream at night. It cuts down on the natural light that floods my office.
Make sure you have proper lighting so people can see your face. I picked up my lights from Walmart for less than $5.
Your Camera Settings
Adding a camera for XSplit Broadcaster incorporates its settings for most brands. At the moment, my camera will use the recording settings in the Logitech software.
If you want to adjust these settings to fine-tune your video feed, you have two methods to open the window.
You can click the “Settings” option on the bottom after highlighting the camera.
Or, you can simply right-click the camera in XSplit Broadcaster to open the settings.
But for the right-click to work, the camera still needs to be selected in the source window. I know…it’s odd. But that’s how this version of XSplit Broadcaster works at the moment.
Every camera brand is different, but most functions should be available. For example, things like color, layout and effects should be accessible from XSplit Broadcaster.
You can also configure the camera specifically for XSplit by clicking the “Configure Manually” radio button.
From here, you make adjustments to create the perfect look for your feed.
I can’t tell you what those are because everyone is different and everyone has varying computer equipment and Internet capabilities. You’ll have to do a bit of trial and error to find the perfect settings for yourself.
For now, you can simply keep the camera for XSplit Broadcaster at its default settings and tweak it later.
For instance, what if you want to add a green screen some time in the future? This is when the chroma key comes into play. It removes the solid-color background of your video so the only thing people see through the camera for XSplit Broadcaster is you.
The chroma key is located in the “Color” setting of your camera.
I’ll create a more in-depth tutorial for this at a later date. It’s actually quite fun to play around with. And XSplit Broadcaster does a good job of using the chroma key feature.
In fact, I didn’t have much trouble at all the last time I used a green screen. Unfortunately, my office space now doesn’t make it practical.
Of course, you can always try to use the TriDef system for a simulated green screen. However, I didn’t have the best of luck when I tried to use it.
You Are the Star
Many have found audience retention, engagement, donations and more increase when you use a video camera during your live feeds. It makes you more relatable and approachable from the standpoint of an audience.
Brand yourself and get your face out there.[template id=”543″]
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