Desk Organization & Zoom Call Lighting with Monitor Stand, Laptop Stand, & Keyboard Tray

How do you organize a desk and set it up for Zoom video conferencing? I show you how to mount a laptop, monitor, and keyboard tray to free up the desk surface. I then show you how to setup your camera and lighting to get the best quality video for Zoom video conferencing.

As you see, my desk started out as a mess. While it functioned well, I didn't have any room to on the desk for taking notes or using reference material. I needed a way to organize the desk to make better use of the space.

A friend of mine, Patrick, showed me his desk organization setup using a monitor stand and a laptop stand. He spoke very highly of it so I didn't hesitate to order one for myself (link below). I'm impressed with how strong this is. My installation was more challenging than most but the process I went through shows you the worst case scenario for installing the monitor stand mount.

As for the keyboard tray, well, as a woodworker, I made this out of the same cherry plywood I used to build the desk. I show the use of a biscuit joiner (aka plate joiner) to extend the material I needed for the bottom of the keyboard tray. As with all my videos, I show some woodworking tips along the way. I applied a wipe-on polyurethane finish to protect the wood before installing the drawer slides. These slides are quality ball-bearing slides and are easy to install on the keyboard tray (link below). It's even easier if you use a "hinge bit", which is a self-centering drill bit, so you just place it in the hole in the drawer slide, turn on the drill, and push. The drill bit is automatically centered in the hole every time - it's accurate and a time saver (link below).

I installed the monitor and laptop stand, installed the keyboard tray, and wow! What a difference. My desk is now organized and I have so much space on the desk surface. I love it!

The setup for Zoom video conference calls requires two key things:
1) Setting your camera to the right height. The camera should be set to eye level, so this laptop stand is perfect for that. It can be easily adjusted with an Allen key.
2) Proper lighting is essential for a camera to accurately read the subject and capture a sharp image. It also can make or break the image you want to convey - are you professional, casual, organized?

Lighting is important for video conference calls and many people haven't invested the time to set this up properly. A camera is a device that basically reads light and color. If your lighting is poor, you will get a grainy, poor quality image. If you have proper lighting, you will get crisp, TV broadcaster type video - it makes such a difference. Lighting for a camera needs to be "front lighting", meaning the light needs to come from behind the camera, lighting up your face in a pleasing manner. Overhead lights in a room don't do this. I demonstrate how that works in my office so you can see the difference yourself. I prefer to use a 3-way lamp that provides soft light that has adjustable levels.

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LINKS
Monitor & Laptop Stand - https://amzn.to/3aTg9BW
🇨🇦 Canadian link - https://amzn.to/3pbAWFQ
Keyboard Tray Slides - https://amzn.to/3bF3zby
🇨🇦 - https://amzn.to/3bFFQYK
Hinge Bit - https://amzn.to/3tDJKHY
🇨🇦 - https://amzn.to/3abDm3f
Purchases made using the links above provide funding for our video production work.

Plans for Miter Saw Dust Collection Hood - https://woodenitbenice.ca/collections...

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Our 1-on-1 Woodworking Advice Sessions - https://woodenitbenice.ca/collections...

See the tools we use in our workshop and the tools we recommend: https://www.amazon.com/shop/homeimpro...
🇨🇦 Canadian link - https://www.amazon.ca/shop/homeimprov...

For more woodworking knowledge or to contact us directly, visit our website https://WoodenItBeNice.ca Hosted by Scott Bennett, owner of Wooden It Be Nice in Brooklin, Ontario, Canada

#organization #monitorstand #zoom