Almost all professionals are using their webcams more than ever given the shift towards remote and hybrid working models. If you spend more time looking into a webcam lens than meeting someone face-to-face, it makes sense to have full control over your device.
Fortunately, Windows has several built-in settings for a camera. In addition, you can also use the manufacturer’s or third-party software to adjust your webcam settings. In this guide we explain how.
How to change basic webcam settings
Basic settings for your webcam include brightness, contrast, and video rotation. However, the exact settings you’ll see may differ depending on the camera you’re using.
You can change this setting from the camera section in the Settings app. Press win + me to launch the Settings app. Select bluetooth and devices in the left sidebar and select cameras from the right panel. Select the webcam for which you want to change the settings.
You’ll see a live webcam image at the top, and just below it you’ll see Default Image Settings. feel free to play with it Brightness Y Contrast options to your liking. You can also rotate your camera image using the dropdown menu next to the video rotation option.
If you want to go back to the defaults, just click the reset settings button next to Restore default camera settings option.
If your hardware supports it, you’ll see more options like Video HDR and “eye contact” (which makes it look like you’re looking directly at the webcam).
How to change your webcam security settings
Windows also allows you to control webcam security options within the Settings app. You can turn off camera access entirely if you prefer, or choose to allow a few apps to access the webcam.
Start by pressing win + me to launch the Settings app. Select Privacy & Security from the left sidebar. Switch to the right pane and scroll down looking for the App permissions section. Select Camera from the device list.
The first option called camera access allows you to completely enable or disable access to the camera. If you want to allow only specific applications to access the webcam, you can select those applications from the list in the Allow apps to access your camera option. Enabling the button next to an app allows access to that app, while disabling the button revokes access to the app’s camera.
How to use a camera app
Your manufacturer may have a camera app that goes with your webcam. Alternatively, you can also use third-party webcam apps like YouCam to change your camera settings.
Download and install the app of your choice and explore the interface for settings. In most cases, they shouldn’t be hard to find. However, since each app has a different interface, we cannot explain how to change settings in all apps.
For example, in YouCam, you can click the cogwheel at the top right to open the settings panel. Gets various configuration sections. If you want to change the brightness and contrast, for example, you can do it from the video enhancement section.
However, you can also do a lot more with YouCam. You can also modify settings that aren’t available in Windows 11. For example, you can change the camera resolution, zoom in or out, and more.
Configure your webcam according to your needs
If you only use the camera for meetings, you can allow access only to apps like Zoom. On the other hand, if you also use the webcam for friendly calls with friends and family, you may want to add more apps to the list. Regardless of how you use the webcam, you have the option to configure it.
Windows has some built-in settings, but you can always use third-party apps if you need more settings. In any case, make sure you are using the correct security settings – webcams can often be hacked.
