Tom Ford on the art of looking good on Zoom

By Holly O'Neill
26th Oct 2020

Tom Ford on the art of looking good on Zoom

The new world, according to Tom Ford.

Back in 2011, Mr Tom Ford gave the world his 15 point guide on how to be man. It was all very Mad Men.

“Have a sport that you love and are good at.”

“Have a daily read of a newspaper.”

“Own a tweezers.”

“Own lots of crisp white cotton shirts.”

“Always have new socks and underwear. Throw the old ones away every six months.”

“Have perfect teeth. If you don’t have them, save up and have them fixed.”

And so on. But that was nearly 10 years ago, and now the world has woken up to the reality that there is no one way to be a man anymore. We have a new reality now — 24 hours a day spent on screens, and no external communication outside of video calls. So Tom Ford’s life-affirming guide has had a modern update: a masterclass in lighting for your next video conference.

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Here’s the art of looking great on Zoom, House Party, FaceTime, Google Hangouts or wherever you’re visible to the world according to Tom Ford, as told to the NY Times.

Step one

Put the computer up on a stack of books so the camera is slightly higher than your head. Say, about the top of your head. And then point it down into your eyes.

Step two

Then take a tall lamp and set it next to the computer on the side of your face you feel is best. The lamp should be in line with and slightly behind the computer so the light falls nicely on your face.

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Step three

Then put a piece of white paper or a white tablecloth on the table you are sitting at but make sure it can’t be seen in the frame. It will give you a bit of fill and bounce.