StreamDeck
In this video, we will demonstrate how to set up an Elgato Stream Deck as a live streaming control surface for your favorite software and PTZ camera. Unbox your StreamDeck, and plug it into your computer to provide the unit with power and connectivity. Your computer should recognize the USB connection almost immediately. The StreamDeck should light up showing you that everything is working. Then download the latest software to set up your StreamDeck at, https://www.elgato.com/en/gaming/downloads.
Note: If you are planning to use your StreamDeck to control OBS, make sure you have OBS installed. The StreamDeck control panel installs a plugin for OBS when it downloads. It will not load properly if OBS is installed after you install the StreamDeck control panel.
Elgato Stream Deck for OBS and vMix
Once you have downloaded the software for either Mac or Windows, you can launch the program. Next, program your stream deck. On the bottom right there is a button for more actions. Install custom action like a CPU usage monitor, an analog clock, and support for 3rd party streaming software such as vMix. Support for OBS, Mixer, StreamLabs, Twitch, Twitter, xSplit, and YouTube are built-in by default. Add commands by dragging and dropping the commands to appear on your StreamDeck to the buttons represented in this application. You can customize the name of each button. You will also be presented with options for configuration.
Elgato Stream Deck IP Camera Control
The physical device shows changes as you are making them. A unique feature for the StreamDeck allows users to create profiles that allow you to open up new sets of buttons. For example, you can have a home profile and a profile for each PTZOptics camera in your studio or each social media platform to control. Add website shortcuts, application shortcuts, camera controls, audio buttons, and much more. For this example, we will create a unique profile for a PTZOptics camera in our studio. You can also automate your live streaming software such as vMix, xSplit, and OBS. For this example, we demonstrate how to use Open Broadcaster Software to control PTZOptics camera directly inside OBS or you can create custom buttons to call PTZ camera presets.
Elgato Stream Deck camera control
We start by setting up OBS and creating a scene for each PTZOptics camera. We use a web browser input to automatically control our PTZ cameras when we switch to our OBS scenes. Open OBS and add a scene for your first camera. Add your camera source and a browser source. Inside the browser, the source uses the HTTP command for calling a camera preset. Set up your camera preset in the location you would like the camera to be. Don’t forget to click the “Refresh Browser when the scene becomes active” button to make sure OBS sends the PTZOptics camera a preset command every time you switch to this input. Duplicate this scene and change the HTTP command to represent a new camera PTZ preset.
HTTP Commands with Elgato Stream Deck
Back in Elgato Stream Deck software, create a profile for OBS to store button commands. Click the top-left dropdown menu and click “Edit Profiles.” In the preferences, window click the plus button to add a new profile for OBS. Now we create a new set of buttons to access from our home screen. It’s a good idea to also create a button to go back to the home screen at any time. We add a stream and record button inside our OBS profile. Then in the OBS studio dropdown menu on the right sidebar, we add a scene for each one created inside OBS. Drag a “Scene” into any button in this profile then name and configure the trigger. Because our OBS scenes have built-in HTTP commands sent to our PTZOptics camera, the cameras will move automatically when a scene is called. We test this by pressing the buttons.
custom HTTP commands for Elgato Stream Deck
Optionally, send P TZ camera preset commands directly to PTZOptics cameras. This may be a better option for remotely controlling your cameras. To do this, set up another profile in your StreamDeck for each PTZOptics camera to control. In your newly created profile, choose the “Website” option under the systems tab. Here, name your preset and enter the HTTP command from the list available on https://ptzoptics.com/downloads.
Note: You will need to know your cameras IP address in order to use HTTP commands. Generally, an HTTP command contains multiple variables used to communicate with your PTZOptics camera over IP.
You can customize the variables in the HTTP command to perform various video production actions with your PTZOptics robotic camera. Do not forget to click “Access in Background” option so that your StreamDeck does not open up a new web-browser every time that you use the button. And that’s it! You now know how to set up an Elgato Stream Deck to control OBS and PTZOptics cameras. Setting this system up with other video production systems will be a fairly similar process. If you have questions please let us know in the comments below. We are really enjoying this new StreamDeck and look forward to sharing more in the future! So don’t forget to subscribe!
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More on PTZ Camera Control & Software
- Livestream Studio builds in PTZ camera control support! Here’s our review.
- New PC & Mac Pan Tilt Zoom Camera Control Software from PTZOptics here.
- Learn how to setup wireless PTZ camera controls here.
- How to access PTZ camera controls outside your network here.
- Using a iOS iphone or iPad app for PTZ camera control here.
- How to mask PTZ camera movement with easing transitions here.
- How to control PTZ camera movement speed here.
- MimoLive builds in PTZ camera support for PTZOptics cameras here.
- Tips for using the IR remote control for PTZ camera control here.
- How to use the IR remote control with multiple PTZ cameras here.
- How to use RS-232 and RS-485 camera control cabling here.
- Testing auto-tracking cameras in a live streaming show setting here.
- PTZ Camera control inside the NewTek Tricasters here.
- How to control PTZ cameras in vMix here.
- Using Multicast for PTZ Camera Control here.
