3. Add a Soft Light

Tissue paper hung from the ceiling can diffuse the light. Just don't start a fire!

In many television studios, the key light would be matched to a fill light coming from a similar angle on the other side of the subject to even out the light and make the shadows less harsh. If I could get my key light to be dim enough, I’d place a fill light, but since I think my key light was too harsh, I am going to make the light more diffuse by directing it through some white tissue paper.

The best one yet.

Be very careful: If you place the tissue paper too close to the light, you could start a fire. Most studio lights have attachments that let you clip various things to lighting fixtures, but don’t try that with a household light. So I suspended my tissue paper from the ceiling, which knocked down the light to something more manageable. The resulting image is the best yet—while the lighting is a bit uneven, at least my face isn’t washed out anymore.

4. Add a Backlight

My head, with a pleasing light behind it (and slightly glowing ears).

Add some dimension by shining a spotlight from the rear. Position the spotlight so that it creates visible highlights somewhere on the outline of your head. The highlights, a thin sliver of white, will set you apart from the background. Make sure your body blocks the backlight—if it shines directly into the lens, the camera may close its iris to compensate.

Consider the placement of the light and how you intend to use the room. In studios, backlights are placed on stands on the floor where nobody needs to walk, or they’re suspended from the ceiling. The further away you place the light, the more powerful it will have to be, and the more electricity you will need to use in order to light yourself. This sort of lighting requires some serious design considerations in order to keep your computer room a living space instead of a television studio.