One of my goals of 2018 was to live stream more. I mainly stream on YouTube, but I do on Facebook once in a great while as well. When I started, I was totally lost. I didn’t know what equipment to use, and just used the stock mic and camera from my laptop. Now that I have tried out several different things and found what works best, I want to share them with you so you can top quality stream too!
Elgato Stream Deck
When live streaming, the Elgato Stream Deck allows you to pop up all sorts of things on your screen. Introduction videos, graphics, follow reminders – the possibilities are endless. Instead of fumbling with OBS or StreamLabs and trying to add in what you wanted, simply press a button and it will show on your live stream. It is super easy to set up and there are many different buttons and pages you can use. A definite must to bring your streams to the next level.
Blue Yeti Microphone
I tried several different microphones before I found the on that my viewers and I liked the most. The Blue Yeti Microphone has great sound and comes in several different colors. It is on the pricier side, so if you want a decent microphone at a lesser cost, the Snowball is a good option too.
Ring Light
Unless you are blessed with the perfect lighting in the room you stream from, lights are pretty important. I found a really affordable ring light that fits perfectly on any desk. There are three different light modes and it can adjust to 11 different brightness levels. There is also a holder for your cellphone if you want to stream or take photos from it – and a nice carrying case for travel.
Green Screen
For live streamers who are playing video games or showing clips a lot, a green screen is important. You can find some with a stand for sale, but they are usually quite pricey. I used PVC piping to create my own green screen stand and purchased this solid color green backdrop. It works perfectly for what I need and was a fraction of the cost!
Webcam
It should come as no surprise that if you need a good webcam. There are many options out there, but I weighed the cost versus the quality and ended up with this one. The quality is amazing and so much better than the stock camera on both of my computers. I highly recommend it.
See some of these in action below!
