it looks fine to me

Do you have additional pictures of the room? Ideally, for Zoom/virtual meetings you should have your camera facing a corner behind you (rather than a flat wall).

Hi Laura, thanks so much for responding. Unfortunately, I don’t have a corner. That is in the back of my basement and its the only full wall.

Just remove the bookends - less is more. The lamps are nice but they're way too small. Look for buffet lamps. Otherwise it's fine.

Any natural light at all near your work station? It is generally advised to position yourself facing a natural light source. Ring lights will do but they'll show up in your eyes or glasses and look very weird. What is your type of business? Could it be categorized as serious vs. fanciful (beads & bottles?) Are your zoom calls sociable, all business or a mix of this and that? If you have lights there, they should be on and they should arrive at 58" - 64" above the floor once on the table. They should look like office lamps, not for other uses in the home. If they won't show in the camera at that height, just forget about them. Maybe some fresh flowers would do and be a nice treat that you could share with the family after work hours.

Thank you so much for your guidance. My job is in financial services so it is more serious but a little more casual. I should probably get rid of the beads. The table is 30 inches off the ground so I think I could get taller lamps that would still show and be within the 58 inch height you suggested. Unfortunately, there is no natural light but I could try a ring light. Thank you!

Any reactions to the art, for the purpose mentioned?

The art would be better in brighter colors rather than somber colors.

get rid of the bookends OR put some books in them. lose the beads and maybe a little taller lamps. I myself would do fun art (but it's not for everyone lol)

I do like the art you have but wonder if you flipped one...different look

True, the art could be a bit more impressive, maybe masculine, but you don't want it to distract from you and the zoom you're on. Here's a nice installation for someone in financial services.

Gallery Wall - Midtown Office · More Info

Your art is fine, but you might try rotating one of the pieces so the dark areas aren't both on the top. I think it's better to keep the subtle art rather than something distracting.

I agree that the art is fine and does not need to be changed. I'd remove everything from the console and add a bowl(something like below), and put a tripod floor lamp on the side.

Love that bowl! thanks so much

Thank you Calidesign! I will flip the canvas around.

I have done the same thing in my basement. Here are some things I learned.

What your area looks like without you in the picture is irrelevant. For example, depending on where you sit, the darker colors on the right picture may not show at all.

Set your computer/laptop/phone up and sit in your chair. Open Zoom, sign in, and click on the little wheel in the upper right - it is settings. On the settings page, click on “video”. On the first page, click on HD, select the tone of your skin, click on “low light” to test if that is needed, and play with the slide bar that enhances your appearance. It makes winkles fade, etc, but too much makes you look artificial.

Your camera should be level with your face. If you are looking down at your screen, your neck becomes very unattractive! I had to set my laptop on 3 reams of paper to get the camera even with my eyes.

Then check the sample video of you for lighting. If your face is washed out, it is because you don’t have enough light. The primary source of light has to be in front of you. For me, none of the basement t lights were enough so I ordered a halo light off Amazon. Very inexpensive. Get one whose legs are long enough make the light part be above your camera. My light has 10 different settings on a remote so I choose the most flattering one. Light plugs into a USB port.

While you are still seated, check your background. Can you see enough to make it interesting but not cluttered? Do your pictures work?

My biggest problem was that my blond hair, pale skin, and light beige paint on the wall made me look one-dimensional. I got several cans of sample paint and experimented until I found a more flattering paint color.

I then scheduled a zoom with my son who uses zoom a lot with senior people in his profession. What he saw and heard was very helpful. He recognized that the camera on my laptop was not adequate. I looked fuzzy. He had me get a Logitech camera off Amazon. It attaches to the top off my laptop. It plugs into USB port. On the settings page of zoom I had to select it not my laptop camera. Finally, he said i sounded like I was in a big empty cave (describes my basement well) so he had me get a stand alone microphone also. I think camera and mic together were about $150 but my son said they made me look and sound much more professional.

Finally, to save the hassle of carrying my laptop downstairs and setting it up for every meeting, since I have auxiliary camera and mic, I set everything up with an old laptop that I don’t use anymore. It stays in the basement and I just need to turn it on to start zooming. Since light, camera, and mic are all plugged into USB ports, I can start with literally turning on one switch.

This ended up taking time and $$$ but, for me, I think I will be using my “studio” for some time.

Wow CH! This is so incredibly helpful, thank you so much! These are things I never even considered but are so important. I am getting to work on this now.

Personally, I love the art. I do agree that you could rotate them to make them a bit more “organized”. I also love the gold bowl someone else suggested. My change would be to bring in more of a white shade rather than the current ivory on the lampshades and vases. I might even try to bring in silver, navy, or pewter colors instead. Perhaps decorative moss balls in a vessel or something that fills the space, so you wouldn’t need anything else.

Dough bowl like this and fill with moss balls.

https://www.urbankitchengroup.com/shop/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2018/07/dough-boards.jpg

This is also pretty... https://shabbyfufu.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/sanctuary-decor-blog.jpg

Whatever you choose-keep it simple. If you go the route of a dough bowl with moss balls... keep it low and simple.

Thanks so much Laura! I’m on Wayfair right now searching for a dough bowl, I love that look.

And more....

https://www.amazon.com/Mexican-Imports-Marcos-Pedestal-Cross-Red/dp/B01A9D2LH2/ref=sr_1_12?dchild=1&keywords=dough+bowl&qid=1618525667&sr=8-12

Houzz also has the trench style -

I incorporated a lot of the advice you all gave me (taller lamps, flipped the canvas, “less is more”, put books in the bookends, ditched the bottles and beads ). I also ordered a bowl but it didn’t come yet. Better?

like it!!

The right canvas needs to be rotated once more so it's positioned the way Melissa R pictured it. It also looks like the pictures are hung unevenly. Maybe it's an optical illusion created by the wallpaper, but it looks like a level might be needed.

Beauty is in the eye......I liked the original positioning of the artwork - best.