How to maintain eye contact with the camera

Looking into the camera lens during video calls and recordings creates the sense that you’re making eye contact with your audience, helping your message feel more personal and engaging. This small gesture conveys confidence and attentiveness—qualities that foster trust and show your audience that you genuinely care about helping them understand what you’re saying.

But maintaining this virtual eye contact can be tricky. Unlike in-person interactions, where eye contact happens naturally, video calls and recordings present unique challenges. The lure of glancing at slides, notes, or app interface controls often pulls your gaze away from the camera, making you seem disengaged.

Fortunately, with a few practical techniques, you can master the art of virtual eye contact and better captivate your audience’s attention. Here are five ways to help you stay focused on the camera without compromising your delivery.

1. Minimize on-screen distractions

One of the biggest challenges to maintaining eye contact during presentations is the temptation to look at everything happening on your screen—unnecessary app windows, chat messages, notifications popping into view. These elements are tailor-made to grab your attention. Don’t let them.

To minimize distractions, close unnecessary tabs and apps before starting your presentation, shutting down anything you don’t need. Additionally, mute notifications by turning off app alerts or system notifications to prevent unexpected pop-ups. By creating a distraction-free environment, you’ll find it easier to keep your attention on the camera, helping your audience feel engaged.

2. Practice speaking without notes

Having your talking points in view is great, but over-reliance on notes can make your delivery feel a bit stiff. Practicing your material until you’re comfortable speaking without constantly referencing notes can help you maintain a natural flow—and consistent eye contact.

Here’s how to rehearse effectively:

• Outline key points instead of scripting every word. This encourages a conversational tone.
• Practice out loud. Saying your points out loud helps solidify your delivery and gives you the confidence to speak off-the-cuff.
• Record and review. Watch yourself on video to find moments when your eyes drift and improve your focus on the camera.

When you know your content well, you’ll feel more at ease looking directly at the camera, connecting with your audience in a way that feels authentic.

3. Use mmhmm’s Speaker Notes

Speaker notes can be your secret weapon for keeping your eyes near the camera. Beyond displaying your talking points, speaker notes consolidate everything you need—slides, notes, and controls—into one focused view. This means you can position your notes right below your camera lens, close enough that you can maintain eye contact with your audience while easily seeing the information you need.

Speaker notes also streamline your presentation controls. You can preview your current and upcoming slides, advance through them, and manage recording—all from a simple, distraction-free window. This lets you focus on your message without looking away from the camera to fumble through menus.

To enable speaker notes in mmhmm, open your presentation and click the Speaker notes button beneath the slide tray. Find out more in our Help article, Speaker Notes Overview.

4. Streamline your controls with Stream Deck

Even seasoned presenters can lose focus when juggling on-screen controls during a presentation. That’s where the Stream Deck by Elgato comes in. This handy control panel offers customizable buttons and dials, allowing you to perform tasks like advancing slides, adjusting volume, or muting your mic—without ever glancing away from the camera.

By making these controls tactile, Stream Deck eliminates distractions, keeping you in your flow and helping you maintain seamless eye contact with your audience.

5. Speak more naturally using mmhmm's Questions feature

While notes can be helpful, there’s magic in speaking without planning out every detail. Freeing yourself from a script can help you capture the naturalism of everyday conversation and avoid sounding rigid or over-rehearsed. That’s where mmhmm’s Questions feature shines.

Instead of writing out a full script, you simply share the topic of your presentation. mmhmm then uses AI to generate thoughtful, tailored follow-up questions that help you explain your ideas naturally—in your own voice. This approach eases the pressure of scripting while helping you connect with your audience in a way that feels spontaneous and genuine.

Questions help you shift from a scripted performance to an engaging conversation, letting your unique perspective and personality come through.

To use Questions:

1. Open mmhmm and select a topic or theme from the welcome window.
2. In the Questions window, click Get started to begin recording.
3. Answer the first question at your own pace. Click Redo to retry or choose I'm ready for the next question to proceed.
4. For each new question, record an answer, then click I'm ready for the next question to continue. Repeat as needed.
5. When you’re finished, click Wrap it up and decide if you want to add anything else. Finally, click Conclude interview to end.

mmhmm then stitches all of your responses into a seamless video. Like any mmhmm video, you can edit your chapters, add or delete chapters, and rearrange them as you see fit.

Mastering virtual eye contact is all about preparation and the right tools. By leveraging features like mmhmm’s speaker notes, tactile controls like Stream Deck, and AI-driven prompts like mmhmm’s Questions, you can stay focused, confident, and connected with your audience—even though you’re not in the same room.

Give these tips a try in your next video call or recording, and watch your engagement soar!