How to Choose the Right Room for Your Video Studio

Choose the room you can control: one where you can block out natural light, shut the door and record without setting anything up. After that only two things matter: a practical space to work and film in, and a suitable background for the camera. Size and looks barely count.

Chris Schwager walks through this decision in the video on this page, using a real choice one of our clients faced.

How do you choose a room for your video studio?

Ask three questions about each room you are considering:

1. Can I block out the natural light?
2. Can I control the space? Can you shut the door and own it while you record?
3. Can I film without friction? Can you sit down and record without moving furniture or setting up gear?

If the answer to all three is yes, you have the right room. If you are stuck between two, the one that scores better on control wins.

Should your studio go in a shared room or a private office?

One of our clients was choosing between two rooms. The first was a communal meeting room off a main corridor, where clients and candidates often walked past. It looked good to visitors, but it was never really theirs. The second was an internal office with more windows, where the team already worked.

The decision came down to visibility against control, and at the centre of it was light. They were considering a curtain across the window of the internal office. Chris called that a great move, because it gives them control of the light and a room they can close the door on and use without distractions.

A room that depends on client traffic, changing light or whether it happens to be free isn't reliable, and a studio that isn't reliable doesn't get used.

Is natural light good for a home or office video studio?

It looks lovely in person and causes problems on camera:

"Natural light might look great in person but for video, it sucks. It's a liability, it's inconsistent." Chris Schwager

Clouds, sunshine, windows and reflections all change your picture, sometimes minute by minute. Unless you control the light completely, your videos won't look the same from one day to the next. That defeats the point of having a studio, which is being able to record whenever you want.

That is why Chris treats blinds or blockout curtains as a must for any room with windows, and why the studios Ridge Films installs use controlled artificial lighting. Recorded at 7am, midday or midnight, the video looks the same. For more on getting light right, set up professional lighting for your video calls.

Does the size of the room matter?

Rarely. Ridge Films has set up studios in laundries, garages, bedrooms, boardrooms and open-plan offices. More often than not, the best-performing studio is the one at your own desk, because it is always ready: you sit down, hit record and go.

The Desktop Studio attaches to a sit-stand desk, so it takes up no extra floor space and there is no gear to pack away. It becomes part of your workstation. To see what that involves, see what the Desktop Studio setup involves.

What background do you need behind you?

One that suits the camera and doesn't need rearranging every time you record. A plain wall can work well. If you want more variety, a backdrop upgrade lets you switch between a clean background, different paper colours or a branded look, depending on the video you are making. You can get a professional background the simple way, or check the mistakes worth avoiding with these five background mistakes to avoid on camera.

Studio room questions we get asked

What is the best room for a video studio?

The one you can control: you can block out natural light, shut the door and record without setting anything up. Practicality and a suitable background matter far more than size or how the room looks.

Can I use a room with windows for a video studio?

Yes, if you can cover the windows. Blinds or blockout curtains shut out changing daylight so the studio's own lighting can give you the same look every time you record.

How much space do I need for a desktop video studio?

Very little. The Desktop Studio attaches to a sit-stand desk and takes up no extra floor space. Ridge Films has installed studios in laundries, garages, bedrooms, boardrooms and open-plan offices.

Should a business put its studio in a shared meeting room?

Only if you can control it. A shared room that clients walk past, that changes with the daylight or that is often booked by someone else makes recording unreliable, and a studio that is unreliable stops getting used.

Not sure which room to use?

If you'd like to talk your space through before you decide, book a call.