> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.openrecorder.xyz/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Timeline camera layouts and per-segment editing

> Choose how the camera and screen share the frame, vary layouts across a recording from the timeline, and adjust each camera segment on its own.

Open Recorder can place the camera as a floating overlay, fill the canvas with camera only, or share the frame between the screen and camera. Layouts are set in the **Layout** section of the **Camera** inspector, and can change across a single recording using camera segments on the timeline.

## Choose a camera layout

Open the **Camera** inspector and expand **Layout**. The **Camera layout** tiles offer four options:

| Layout              | Behavior                                                                                                                                    |
| ------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Overlay**         | The camera floats over the full-screen recording. Use the **Position**, **Size**, and **Margin** controls in the Style section to place it. |
| **Camera only**     | The camera fills the canvas. Screen audio is kept, but the screen is not shown.                                                             |
| **Split screen**    | Full-height camera panel next to the screen.                                                                                                |
| **Screen + camera** | Screen with a smaller square camera beside it.                                                                                              |

Layouts that show a screen panel (**Split screen** and **Screen + camera**) reveal these extra controls:

* **Camera side** puts the camera on the **Left** or **Right** of the screen.
* **Screen sizing** switches between **Fit** (keep the full screen visible at its original aspect ratio) and **Cover** (fill the panel and crop the edges).
* **Match camera corners** rounds the screen with the same radius as the camera. Turn it off to reveal a separate **Screen Radius** slider (0–100 px).
* **Camera Width** sets the camera panel width from 10 to 70 percent of the usable area.
* **Gap** adds spacing between the screen and camera, from 0 to 12 percent.

Any layout other than **Overlay** also exposes:

* **Keep face centered** enables on-device face tracking so the camera reframes as you move. Detection jitter is filtered and framing eases toward deliberate movement, so preview and export stay steady.
* **Padding** insets the whole layout from the canvas edge, from 0 to 20 percent.

## Vary layouts across the recording

The timeline shows a camera row for each segment. Change layout at the playhead without disturbing earlier segments:

1. Move the playhead to where you want the new layout to start.
2. Click the camera layout menu (the split-rectangles icon) next to the timeline clock.
3. Pick a layout, or choose **Start New Camera Segment Here** to keep the current layout and vary its settings instead.

Each split creates an independent camera segment. Earlier segments keep their layout, corners, width, and other settings.

Layout changes ease between segments during playback and export. When a new segment is very short, the transition scales down to fit the segment's length.

## Edit a specific camera segment

Select a camera segment on the timeline to open it in the sidebar. The inspector mirrors the whole-recording **Layout**, **Style**, and **Position** controls, but changes apply only to the selected segment.

The **Camera** group also shows the segment's start, end, and duration. Use it to:

* **Start New Segment Here** splits the segment at the playhead so each half can be styled separately.
* **Split at Playhead**, **Merge Previous**, and **Merge Next** in the **Split** group rearrange segment boundaries.
* **Visible** hides the camera for the segment without deleting it.

Drag either edge of a camera segment on the timeline to resize it. Adjacent segments share the moved boundary, so no gaps open up.

## Scene transforms and the camera

When a scene applies a transform (tilt, rotation, scale, or position) to the recording, the **Camera** group in the **Scene** inspector controls whether the camera follows:

* **Camera follows scene** on: screen and camera rotate, tilt, scale, and move together.
* **Camera follows scene** off: the camera stays upright and keeps its layout position while the screen moves.

This switch appears only when a camera is present in the recording.

## Overlay camera behavior during zoom

When a **zoom region** is active, the overlay camera stays visible instead of being clipped. It shrinks in place so the border and shadow stay inside the canvas.

Use **Scale down on zoom** in the Layout section to tune the effect. It appears when the camera layout is **Overlay** and ranges from 0 to 75 percent, with a default of 15 percent. At 0 percent the camera keeps its normal size during zooms. Higher values make more room for the magnified screen.

See [Zoom effects](/editing/zoom-effects) for zoom timing, presets, and per-region transitions.