They can be attached to your laptop, tablet or phone so long as it's 18mm or thinner. They're great for taking on nights out so you can capture well-lit selfies, on holiday or even when traveling away from home so that you can Facetime loved ones no matter how much light is around you. Given their donut-shape, ring lights are perfect for headshots and close-ups, whether you're shooting still images or video. So if you photograph or film yourself or others directly looking into the camera, a ring light is perfect for you. Ring lights can also be used like more traditional LED light panels, to provide overall key or fill lighting to a scene, but they are tailor made for shooting faces. Do professionals use ring lights?

The best lighting for webcam streaming comes down to positioning, brightness options, and your budget. If you want professional-grade light, we recommend the Neewer 5600K USB LED Lights. They're dimmable, come with eight filters, and offer endless lighting options.This ring light earns its "Pro" designation with distinction. At 17 inches in diameter, it's an inch smaller than the Lume Cube Wireless Ring Light (below), but it gives you a half hour more battery life, and the new light stand is a half-foot higher.The new remote control is a godsend for lighting yourself without having to keep getting up and down, and the improved diffusion is a dream for lighting portrait subjects. The quality of light is also absolutely spot-on, which is particularly important for creators shooting content such as makeup tutorials. We've also included products that will work well with different types of video setup, like the Ivisii 19 inch Ring Light, which is a particularly good choice for those capturing video on an iPad. Note that many ring lights can hold small DSLRs and mirrorless cameras but will not be stable enough to hold a full-frame camera. Videographers love ring lights not just because of their soft and flattering lighting but because they provide a continuous light – regular camera flash is obviously no good at all for video. Many of the best ring lights enable you to adjust the color temperature to suit different skin tones (making them great for makeup tutorials, too) and to match the ambient lighting conditions. Whether you're using them in the sun, the shade or yellow-tinged indoor light, you can make your lighting look natural. We also take them out to see if they're sturdy enough to be transported and used on location, or if they're only really robust enough to stay on your desk or in the corner of your room. It's important to see how the output performs when using batteries versus main power, too, if that's something they offer. Frequently asked questions What's the difference between ring light and LED lights?

Paying extra does deliver loads of extra functionality. This is the only webcam in the group that offers 4K video recording. It runs that high resolution at 30fps, and it's a stunning option: video is crystal clear, with loads of detail and sharpness.

Image quality is outstanding: crisp, bright and colourful, with great contrast. The white-balancing works well, and the Brio handles lighting adjustment with ease. In short, you're almost always going to get fantastic image quality with this unit.

Image quality, for starters, is superb: crisp, clear and well-balanced, with natural colour and good detail. The good core image is bolstered by fast, effective autofocus, solid exposure adjustment and automatic white balance. Audio quality is decent thanks to stereo microphones. When you need an inexpensive light that will work just as well with your laptop as it will your phone, we like the QIAYA selfie ring light. It's USB-powered and clips directly onto your phone, tablet, or laptop; giving off soft, warm, adjustable light. verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ Overall, the C920s is the best option around right now: a crisp, clear and intuitive device that'll work in virtually any home or office situation. Apart from size, another thing that sets apart one LED ring light from another is the amount of LEDs, which affects how diffuse and possibly how bright the light is.We've made sure to include products with plenty of LEDs for this reason. What controls should a ring light have?But another reason is the arrangement of the light. The ring creates a dispersed light that’s much more flattering on the face. Depending on the position of the light, the ring will usually be reflected in the subject's eyes, and if you look very closely you'll probably see that telltale halo in many videos online. However, this can also be advantageous, with the glint adding life to the eyes. The secret is their size and shape. The best ring lights produce a constant, wide, circular light that illuminates the face from all directions – and the bigger the ring, the softer the lighting. The result is incredibly flattering illumination, with spectacular circular catchlights in the eyes, soft falloff, and light that generally wraps and sculpts the face. The Lube Cube Wireless ring light might seem overpriced but it has a lot of really great features compared to others. The light itself is really bright, and you can either run it off mains power or for up to 90 minutes on batteries (which are supplied). It also includes an LED readout to monitor your settings and it comes with a sturdy 6.5ft light stand.

If you’re looking to cover a webcam or laptop camera you already own then we don’t think you pay too much mind to what you’re getting – given it’s typically just a sliding piece of plastic. You can find a wide selection of webcam covers here – and they’re quite cheap. What webcam do YouTubers use? That extra blur is not a big deal, though. Recording at 1080p means that your images are still easily sharp enough for business and home use. Elsewhere, the Anker delivers accurate, natural pictures alongside clear, well-balanced sound. It’s good in low-light conditions, too. You never want to be seen fiddling with your light, trying to make adjustments while filming. A remote control helps you make minor adjustments and do it out of the line of sight. The ring light and wireless remote control kit from PIXEL come with a 19-inch bi-color vlogging light, filter, mounting adapters, and a wireless remote controller. It's the perfect setup for casual and professional Zoom meetings, vlogging, and FaceTime chats. Modern ring lights are LED lights, since they are powered by clusters of LED bulbs. However, most LED lights come in the form of rectangular-shaped panels, which produce much flatter illumination. Ring lights, on the other hand, are donut-shaped, which is much more flattering to faces. So rather than providing harsh, flat lighting, ring lights sculpt your features and provide a more dimensional, pleasing, professional look. What are ring lights good for? Most people will benefit from choosing one of the best ring lights with a dimming/brightness control: Having a ring light that allows you to control the brightness will make life a lot easier – if the brightness is fixed, then your only option if the light level is wrong is to move the light closer or further away.A dimming control allows you to place the light where you want it and change the strength of the light as required. Do I need a ring light with changing colour temperature?Pros: Wide-angle lens for more image capture; decent 1080p image quality; tilt and swivel adjustment options