On September 1st 2020, Zoom released an update with new features that come in handy to every user. These updates will make your experience in video calls and conferences even better, and will definitely improve your experience on virtual shows and presentations. If this is your first time doing virtual gigs or using the platform, here is what you need to know about Zoom’s latest features, from my experience as a virtual entertainer.
How to customize the gallery view?
The new first feature Zoom has for its users is the possibility to customize the order of your gallery view.
This allows the host and co-host to rearrange the gallery view to suit their needs, and also share it with the rest of the participants in the call.
I find this particular feature to be super useful for my shows, and It might be perfect for teachers and fellow entertainers as well if they require to give participants a particular order or to have specific people on hand at a certain moment.
Maybe the only thing that isn’t as perfect to me is the fact that you need to have your video showing to be able to move other participants’ videos around.
I did a video covering Zoom’s latest features along with some colleagues on my YouTube channel, so check it out if you want more of my experience using these features.
How to Multi-pin and multi-spotlight your participants on zoom?
The second most prominent update for Zoom was the multi-pin and multi-spotlight feature.
This enables the host and co-host to add up to nine people to the spotlight on speaker view and remove them all at once to add different people to the spotlight.
The only problem I see with this feature is that, when you remove everyone from the spotlight, your video also gets removed.
That means that, if you want to have the spotlight all the time, you’ll have to remove everyone one by one or remove them all at once (including you) and add your video to the spotlight manually again. It requires a bit of effort there, but nothing to worry about.
More of Zoom’s latest features
Other features added in Zoom’s latest update are custom languages for language interpretation and high fidelity audio mode. You can read more about this on Zoom’s website.I haven’t tried any of these yet, but they come in handy if you are doing a conference with people around the world who don’t speak your language or if you are a singer and want to enhance the quality of your sound. I have a post on choosing the best microphone for you in my blog too, in case you are interested!
Zoom is one of the tools I use the most during my virtual shows, and I highly recommend it if you are starting on your virtual journey because it’s easy to use and has many great features that can complement any kind of presentation.
Zoom’s latest features, are great, and I’m sure I’ll be using them in my virtual performances in the future.
Keep up the good thoughts,
Alan Chamo
Entertainer, Mentalist & Keynote Speaker