Mar 01, 2021

Transparent whiteboard in Microsoft Teams or Zoom using OBS

This trick lets you write on a “whiteboard” while your video is visible in the background — great for teaching or presentations in Zoom or Teams.

How it works

You use OBS Studio with its Virtual Camera feature. OBS composites your webcam feed with a transparent writing layer, then sends the combined output to Zoom or Teams as a virtual camera.

Video walkthrough

What you need

  • OBS Studio (free)
  • OBS Virtual Camera (built into OBS 26+)
  • A stylus or drawing tablet for writing (optional but recommended)

Steps

Step 1: Install OBS Studio and open it.

Step 2: Add a Video Capture Device source for your webcam.

Step 3: Add a Display Capture or Window Capture source on top, and use a Chroma Key or Color Correction filter to make the background transparent.

Step 4: Click Start Virtual Camera in OBS.

Step 5: In Zoom or Teams, change your camera input to OBS Virtual Camera.

You can now draw/annotate on your screen and it overlays on your video feed.