# How to Make Eye Contact on Video Calls and Zoom Interviews

To make eye contact on a video call, look at the camera lens, not at the person's face on screen. Raise the camera to eye level, move the video window right under the lens, and put any notes beside it. Look into the camera when you speak, especially for key points, and at faces when you're listening.

By the Speaking Coach team at Sodhera Intelligence. Updated 2026-10-22. Source: https://www.orecci.com/speaking-coach/guides/eye-contact-on-video-calls/

## Why you look away even when you're looking at them

On a video call, the other person's face is on your screen and the camera is above it. When you look at their eyes, the camera sees you looking down. To them, you seem to be reading or avoiding their gaze. The bigger the gap between the camera and their face on screen, the more obvious it is.

So "eye contact" on video means looking into the lens. Since you can't see their reaction while you do it, the trick is to set things up so the lens and their face are as close together as possible, and to know when to look where.

## Set up the camera

| Setting | What to aim for | Quick fix |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Height** | Lens level with your eyes, or slightly above | Put the laptop on books or a box; adjust an external webcam |
| **Distance** | Head and top of shoulders in frame, roughly an arm's length away | Sit back rather than leaning in |
| **Angle** | Straight on, not looking up from below | Avoid the "up the nose" laptop-on-lap angle |
| **Light** | Light on your face, from in front or to the side | Face a window; don't sit with a window behind you |
| **Frame** | Your eyes about a third of the way down the frame | Tilt the screen or lower the chair |

Laptop cameras sitting low on a desk are the most common problem. Raising the camera to eye level means you no longer look down at people, and a natural glance at the screen is closer to the lens.

## Put their face next to the lens

1. **Shrink the video window** so it isn't full screen.
2. **Drag it to the top of the screen, right under the camera.** On a laptop, that's top centre.
3. **In a one-to-one call, use speaker view**, so their face is the one under the lens.
4. **On a large monitor, use an external webcam** placed above the middle of the screen, or move the video window closer to where the camera is.

Now, when you glance at their face, your eyes are only a little below the lens, and the camera reads it as close to eye contact.

## Where to put your notes

Notes are fine in a video call, as long as reading them doesn't take your eyes far from the lens.

- **Sticky notes beside the camera.** Three or four keywords in large letters, stuck on the screen edge near the lens.
- **A short notes window at the top of the screen,** next to the video window, never at the bottom.
- **Keywords, not sentences.** Reading full sentences pulls your eyes side to side, which looks like reading.
- **Not on your lap or desk.** Looking down is the most visible glance of all.

## When to look at the camera and when at faces

You don't need to stare into the lens for the whole call. That's tiring and you lose all feedback. Switch on purpose:

| Moment | Look at |
| --- | --- |
| Starting an answer or a point | Camera |
| Your key sentence, number or conclusion | Camera |
| Listening to a question | Their face (it's fine; you're listening) |
| Checking a reaction mid-answer | A quick glance at their face, then back |
| Thinking for a second | Away is fine, the same as in person |
| Closing an answer | Camera |

A simple rule: **speak to the lens, listen to the face.** In a video job interview, this means most of your answers go to the camera, and you look at the interviewer while they talk. The [video interview guide](/speaking-coach/interviews/video-interview/) covers the rest of the setup.

## A two-minute check before every call

1. Open your camera preview. Are your eyes about a third of the way down the frame?
2. Look straight into the lens and say a sentence. Does it look like you're looking at the viewer?
3. Now look at where their video window will be. How far down does your gaze drop? If it's obvious, move the window closer to the camera.
4. Check the light. Can you see your eyes clearly?
5. Stick your notes beside the lens and check they're readable without leaning.
6. Turn off self-view once the call starts, if your app allows it. Watching yourself pulls your eyes away from everything else.

## One-way and recorded interviews

In a recorded interview there's no face to look at, only the lens. That makes eye contact easier, but it can feel strange. Put a small picture or a sticky note with a smiley face next to the camera and talk to it as if it's a person. The [one-way video interview guide](/speaking-coach/interviews/one-way-video-interview/) has more on recorded formats.

## Practice before the real call

Record a two-minute answer to a common question on your laptop camera and watch it with the sound off. You'll see right away how often you look down or away. Then do it again with the window moved and notes beside the lens. If you also want to rehearse the answers themselves, Speaking Coach can play the interviewer and follow up on what you actually say.

## Questions people ask

### Should I look at the camera or the screen on Zoom?

Look at the camera when you're speaking, especially for key points, and at the screen when you're listening. Moving the video window right under the camera makes both nearly the same.

### Is it rude to not make eye contact on a video call?

Not really, but it can make you seem distracted or less confident. Raising the camera and looking at the lens when you talk solves most of it.

### How do I read notes in a video interview without it being obvious?

Keep only keywords, in large print, right next to the camera. Glance at them the way you'd glance at a notebook in person, then look back at the lens.

### How do I make eye contact in a group video call?

Look into the lens when you speak, as if the camera were the whole group. When someone else talks, look at their tile. In gallery view, move the window so the most active speakers are near the top.

### Where should my camera be on a dual-monitor setup?

Put the camera on the monitor where the call window is, centred at the top, and keep the call on that screen. Looking across to the other monitor reads as looking away.

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