It’s easy to do if your computer is up for it, and I swear it transforms heading into yet another face-to-virtual-face meeting into, well, at least something better than another virtual meeting. Ok, maybe that’s a little dramatic, but it still makes me smile. Suddenly I’m no longer sheltering-in-place at home, I’ve escaped and am living the digital nomad life, taking that meeting from an exotic location. Then I discovered (like many of us) that I can change my background image and a whole new world opened up. Since we have been in quarantine, clicking that link to open up yet another meeting where I now have to be on screen has become almost painful. But I almost always have clients enter the meeting with video off under the guise (and truth!) that I am just going to share my screen.

We’re partial to this lemons background ourselves.I have been working remotely for nine years now. If you’re a whizz with Photoshop (or any other image editing software), you have the freedom to create any background you like, but Canva provides a simple alternative for those of us not gifted in design.Ĭanva’s tool allows you to create your own Zoom background using its library of millions of illustrations and icons, and customise the design with a few easy-to-use editing tools.įor those who haven’t used Canva before, there are 80 ready-made templates available, ranging from star sign-themed illustrations to landscape shots. Creating custom Zoom backgroundsĬreating your own custom Zoom background is simple, especially with the newly released tool from Canva (opens in new tab). Using a green screen backdrop is ideal, but impractical for many, and a plain background of any colour works perfectly well so long as your clothing isn’t the same colour.

Zoom backgrounds don’t perform quite as well in partial darkness or glaring light, which can both result in unwanted distortion. Whichever background you select in the settings pane will automatically be applied when you next log into a video conference (which is worth bearing in mind if you’re also using the application to conference with friends in your downtime).įor the best results, it’s important to ensure the video is bright and evenly lit.

Beach funny zoom backgrounds