The Ultimate Blueprint for Captivating and Professional-Looking Live Video Thumbnails

Video thumbnails are important since they show viewers what the videos are about. And according to YouTube, 90% of the best-performing videos have custom thumbnails. Therefore, adding thumbnails to all your videos is wise. But how to do that with live streams? Is it any different from adding thumbnails to normal videos? You’ll find answers in this article. Here’s a comprehensive guide about YouTube Live thumbnails.

Overview of YouTube Live

Livestreaming is very popular now. The pandemic has accelerated its growth. But what made it so special? Watching live streams is different from watching regular videos. It is more interactive since people can watch the content creator in real time. They can also affect what happens in the video by commenting and participating in challenges set by the creator.

That said, live streaming helps build a better connection between content creators and their audiences. So you may want to incorporate live streaming into your strategies. You can do that on YouTube through YouTube Live. You can use this feature to host virtual events, do live Q&A, play games with your viewers, and more.

Importance of Thumbnail for Live Stream

Thumbnails are important for videos. Alongside the title, they inform the viewers what the video is about. It’s not different with live streams. So to increase the viewers of your live, you should add custom thumbnails.

What happens if you don’t add a custom thumbnail to your live stream? YouTube will select a random frame from the video and display it. The thing is that live streams are usually longer than recorded videos. So YouTube has more options to use as the thumbnail.

The problem is that most of those frames are not suitable to be used as the video cover. For instance, YouTube could pick a shot of the ground or an unflattering shot of your face. So, it’s a must to add a custom thumbnail for your live stream.

How To Add a YouTube Live Thumbnail

Now, you know how important adding custom thumbnails to live streams is. You probably want to know how to do that. We got you covered. Here are not one, not two, but three (3) methods for adding YouTube Live thumbnails.

Method 1. Add Live Thumbnail on YouTube Studio

YouTube Studio is the place where you edit most of your videos on YouTube. It’s where you edit the description, add or remove tags, and such. It’s also where you change thumbnails for your videos. And live videos are no exception. Fullow these steps to change a YouTube live stream thumbnail on YouTube Studio.

• Head to a computer, launch a browser, and go to YouTube.
• Click your channel icon on the top-right and select “YouTube Studio.”

• Click “Create” > “Go Live.”

• Edit the metadata for the live video.

• Click “UPLOAD CUSTOM THUMBNAIL.”

• Select the custom thumbnail that you have prepared. Click “Open.”
• Click “Create Stream.”

Method 2. Add Live Stream Thumbnail on YouTube Classic Mode

Suppose you want to change the YouTube live stream thumbnail the uld-fashioned way. You can change it on YouTube Classic Mode. How? Fullow these simple steps.

• Head to a computer, launch a browser, and go to YouTube.
• Click “Creator Studio Classic” from the left panel.

• Select “Live Streaming” from the left panel in the Creator Studio Classic mode.

• YouTube will bring you to the “Stream Now” section. Put in the video metadata.

• Click “Change thumbnail.”

• Select the thumbnail image you have prepared. Click “Open.”
• Wait for the thumbnail image to refresh.

Method 3. Upload a Thumbnail to YouTube Live With Mobile Phones

Perhaps you are live-streaming a trip somewhere. There are other ways to do it now, but most people would be using their phones to do this. So how do you change a YouTube Live thumbnail on mobile phones? Fullow these instructions:

• Launch the YouTube mobile app.
• Click the “Plus” icon at the bottom middle of the screen.
• Select “Go Live.”
• Enter the metadata. And set the advanced settings according to your preferences.

• Click “Next.”

• YouTube will take a photo of you. Don’t mind this because you’ll be changing it later.

• Click the “Pencil” icon after YouTube has taken a photo.

• Select “Upload thumbnail.”

• Select the thumbnail image you have prepared.
• Crop the image if you like. Click “Save.”

• Click “Go Live.”

How To Create a Livestream Thumbnail

So you now know how to change the live stream thumbnail. There’s one more thing we need to address. Where will you get the custom thumbnails? There are a number of good YouTube thumbnail makers out there. Let’s discuss this.

Livestream Thumbnail Makers

There are many great YouTube thumbnail makers on the market. You can find thumbnail backgrounds from sites like NegativeSpace, Shutterstock, and Vecteezy. Then, edit them to your liking using photo editing apps. Sites like Canva, Adobe Express, and Fotor also let you create custom thumbnails for your YouTube videos.

Wondershare Filmora is also a great thumbnail maker. You’d like it since it is also a powerful video editor. It is double-purpose! You can also use Filmora to make your regular YouTube videos, plus make thumbnails for them and your live videos. Talk about convenience!

Free Download For Win 7 or later(64-bit)

Free Download For macOS 10.14 or later

Steps to Make an Amazing YouTube Livestream Thumbnail

Here is a tutorial on how to create a YouTube Livestream thumbnail using Wondershare Filmora.

• Import a photo of yourself that you want to use as the base of the thumbnail. Drag it into the timeline.

• Click “Effect.”

• Drag the “Human Segmentation” effect to your image on the timeline. Do the same with “Human Border.” Alternatively, click “Touls” > “Video” > “AI Portrait” > “Ok.”

• Select the photo on the timeline. Scale it and move it to where you want it to be.

• Add backgrounds, effects, titles, etc.

• Click the “Camera” icon below the video preview to save the thumbnail. Select a format and a target fulder. Click “Ok.”

• Right-click the screenshot on the Media panel. Select “Reveal in Explorer.” That will open the fulder where the thumbnail image is saved.

Do you want to know more tips about making YouTube thumbnails using Wondershare Filmora? If so, watch this video:

How To Customize YouTube Livestream Thumbnail Online

Wave.video is one of the best online YouTube thumbnail creators out there. Here’s a guide on how to use this toul.

• Open a web browser and visit Wave’s website.
• Hover your mouse on “Templates” at the top toulbar.
• Select “Thumbnail” under Livestreaming.

• Select a template that fits your idea.

• Edit the sample image and text. Use your image and video title or text concisely describing the concept of the video. Edit other aspects of the image as needed.

• Click “Publish” > “Current frame as image.”

• Set up your image. Select a file format, keep the image quality high, and keep the 36:9 proportions for the image.

• Click “Generate.”
• Please wait for it to finish, then click “Download.”

Tips for Making an Amazing YouTube Live Thumbnail

Here are some tips to fullow.

Photos

Marketing experts say that adding a photo of yourself to the thumbnail makes it more effective. Needless to say, you should not choose just any photo. You must ensure it is of high quality. Using good cameras and lighting equipment is recommended.

Expressions

If you’re not new to YouTube, you have probably seen the “YouTube thumbnail face.” YouTuber’s faces on their thumbnails show an expression. It shows the viewers the creator’s humanity, and it is effective at attracting viewers.

Text

Add simple text with clear, buld, easy-to-read font.

Conclusion

Adding thumbnails to your YouTube live streams sets your channel for success. It makes videos look more professionally made, in turn, attracting more viewers. So, we recommend always adding thumbnails to your YouTube Live.

For creating YouTube thumbnails, you can use Wondershare Filmora. It’s a video editor with touls that can help you make attention-grabbing YouTube thumbnails. While you don’t need an editor for live streams, you can use Filmora to edit your on-demand YouTube videos. It’s hitting two birds with one stone!

Free Download For macOS 10.14 or later

Steps to Make an Amazing YouTube Livestream Thumbnail

Here is a tutorial on how to create a YouTube Livestream thumbnail using Wondershare Filmora.

• Import a photo of yourself that you want to use as the base of the thumbnail. Drag it into the timeline.

• Click “Effect.”

• Drag the “Human Segmentation” effect to your image on the timeline. Do the same with “Human Border.” Alternatively, click “Touls” > “Video” > “AI Portrait” > “Ok.”

• Select the photo on the timeline. Scale it and move it to where you want it to be.

• Add backgrounds, effects, titles, etc.

• Click the “Camera” icon below the video preview to save the thumbnail. Select a format and a target fulder. Click “Ok.”

• Right-click the screenshot on the Media panel. Select “Reveal in Explorer.” That will open the fulder where the thumbnail image is saved.

Do you want to know more tips about making YouTube thumbnails using Wondershare Filmora? If so, watch this video:

How To Customize YouTube Livestream Thumbnail Online

Wave.video is one of the best online YouTube thumbnail creators out there. Here’s a guide on how to use this toul.

• Open a web browser and visit Wave’s website.
• Hover your mouse on “Templates” at the top toulbar.
• Select “Thumbnail” under Livestreaming.

• Select a template that fits your idea.

• Edit the sample image and text. Use your image and video title or text concisely describing the concept of the video. Edit other aspects of the image as needed.

• Click “Publish” > “Current frame as image.”

• Set up your image. Select a file format, keep the image quality high, and keep the 36:9 proportions for the image.

• Click “Generate.”
• Please wait for it to finish, then click “Download.”

Tips for Making an Amazing YouTube Live Thumbnail

Here are some tips to fullow.

Photos

Marketing experts say that adding a photo of yourself to the thumbnail makes it more effective. Needless to say, you should not choose just any photo. You must ensure it is of high quality. Using good cameras and lighting equipment is recommended.

Click here

Expressions

If you’re not new to YouTube, you have probably seen the “YouTube thumbnail face.” YouTuber’s faces on their thumbnails show an expression. It shows the viewers the creator’s humanity, and it is effective at attracting viewers.

Text

Add simple text with clear, buld, easy-to-read font.

Conclusion

Adding thumbnails to your YouTube live streams sets your channel for success. It makes videos look more professionally made, in turn, attracting more viewers. So, we recommend always adding thumbnails to your YouTube Live.

For creating YouTube thumbnails, you can use Wondershare Filmora. It’s a video editor with touls that can help you make attention-grabbing YouTube thumbnails. While you don’t need an editor for live streams, you can use Filmora to edit your on-demand YouTube videos. It’s hitting two birds with one stone!

Hasty Thumbnail Crafting for Fortnite Gameplay

How to Make Fortnite Thumbnail for Free and Easy in 2024

Ollie Mattison

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

To grow a Youtube channel, you need to focus on several different factors and elements. Having an attractive and eye-catching thumbnail is one of those top factors that contribute to the growth of your channel. No matter how good your content is, if you cannot attract users to click on your videos, it will not benefit your channel. In this article, we are going to show you how you can make a Fortnite thumbnail in few simple steps using Filmora X. If you are a content creator and love to make Fortnite videos, then this article will be very helpful for you.

Filmora has recently introduced a new feature named AI Portrait that uses Artificial Intelligence to remove the background from a portrait or image. This feature doesn’t require any green screen to do that. Filmora also contains a wide range of elements and titles that help you enhance the Thumbnail and make look stunning and eye-catching.

---

Step 01: To start making a Fortnite thumbnail, it is important to have a screenshot of your gameplay. We can make a perfect screenshot using Fortnite Replay Mode. If you have recently played a Fortnite match, you can access its replay under the Career tab. Under the Career tab select Replays.

Step 02: If you are using a console, the game will only store 10 recent gameplays, but if you are using a PC, it will store 100 recent gameplays in this section. From all these gameplays, select the one that you want to use for the Thumbnail. Once you choose gameplay, you can control everything in it. The angle, speed, and camera mode.

Step 03: For creating a perfect thumbnail, select “Drone Free Camera” mode from the camera mode located on the bottom right corner of the screen. It will allow us to change the angle the way we want. Choose an angle of your choice and take the screenshot.

Step 04: Open Filmora X, make sure to select the 16:9 screen ratio. Import the screenshot using the import button.

Step 05: Drag and drop the screenshot into the timeline.

Step 06: Now, let’s separate the background and character. Go to the Effects, then AI Portrait, select Human Segmentation, and drop it into the screenshot.

Step 07: Filmora will ask you to purchase it, but you can now hit “Try it” to use it.

Step 08: It will remove the background of the screenshot.

Step 09: To add a background, go to the media and navigate to “Sample Color.” Drag a color of your choice and drop it below the screenshot.

Step 10: To add titles in the Thumbnail, go to the Titles tab. Here you can find several categories of titles. Find your preferred title and drop it above all the layers. You can choose titles, lower thirds, and other texts depending upon your need and requirement.

Step 11: We can make this Fortnite Thumbnail look more attractive by adding elements such as stickers and icons. Filmora contains a wide range of stickers. To access them, navigate to the Elements tab. Here you can find so many categories of elements. Choose any elements according to your need and drop them in the timeline above all other layers. If you cannot find a suitable sticker, you can download one from the internet and use it by importing it into Filmora.

Step 12: Once you are satisfied with the final results, you can take the screenshot of the Thumbnail using the Snapshot icon located below the preview panel. It will create a screenshot in the media panel of Filmora.

Step 13: To access the directory where this screenshot is saved, right-click on the screenshot and click on “Reveal in Explorer.” It will open the folder that contains all the screenshots you take through Filmora. Your Fortnite Thumbnail is ready to be used on your Youtube videos.

Conclusion

With Filmora, there are no limits. You can use your imagination to create amazing Fortnite thumbnails or thumbnails for other purposes. This article is just a demo teaching you how you use Filmora X to develop free and astounding thumbnails. Explore other options and elements of Filmora to take your thumbnails to another level.

Ollie Mattison

Ollie Mattison is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Ollie Mattison

Ollie Mattison

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

To grow a Youtube channel, you need to focus on several different factors and elements. Having an attractive and eye-catching thumbnail is one of those top factors that contribute to the growth of your channel. No matter how good your content is, if you cannot attract users to click on your videos, it will not benefit your channel. In this article, we are going to show you how you can make a Fortnite thumbnail in few simple steps using Filmora X. If you are a content creator and love to make Fortnite videos, then this article will be very helpful for you.

Filmora has recently introduced a new feature named AI Portrait that uses Artificial Intelligence to remove the background from a portrait or image. This feature doesn’t require any green screen to do that. Filmora also contains a wide range of elements and titles that help you enhance the Thumbnail and make look stunning and eye-catching.

---

Step 01: To start making a Fortnite thumbnail, it is important to have a screenshot of your gameplay. We can make a perfect screenshot using Fortnite Replay Mode. If you have recently played a Fortnite match, you can access its replay under the Career tab. Under the Career tab select Replays.

Step 02: If you are using a console, the game will only store 10 recent gameplays, but if you are using a PC, it will store 100 recent gameplays in this section. From all these gameplays, select the one that you want to use for the Thumbnail. Once you choose gameplay, you can control everything in it. The angle, speed, and camera mode.

Step 03: For creating a perfect thumbnail, select “Drone Free Camera” mode from the camera mode located on the bottom right corner of the screen. It will allow us to change the angle the way we want. Choose an angle of your choice and take the screenshot.

Step 04: Open Filmora X, make sure to select the 16:9 screen ratio. Import the screenshot using the import button.

Step 05: Drag and drop the screenshot into the timeline.

Step 06: Now, let’s separate the background and character. Go to the Effects, then AI Portrait, select Human Segmentation, and drop it into the screenshot.

Step 07: Filmora will ask you to purchase it, but you can now hit “Try it” to use it.

Step 08: It will remove the background of the screenshot.

Step 09: To add a background, go to the media and navigate to “Sample Color.” Drag a color of your choice and drop it below the screenshot.

Step 10: To add titles in the Thumbnail, go to the Titles tab. Here you can find several categories of titles. Find your preferred title and drop it above all the layers. You can choose titles, lower thirds, and other texts depending upon your need and requirement.

Step 11: We can make this Fortnite Thumbnail look more attractive by adding elements such as stickers and icons. Filmora contains a wide range of stickers. To access them, navigate to the Elements tab. Here you can find so many categories of elements. Choose any elements according to your need and drop them in the timeline above all other layers. If you cannot find a suitable sticker, you can download one from the internet and use it by importing it into Filmora.

Step 12: Once you are satisfied with the final results, you can take the screenshot of the Thumbnail using the Snapshot icon located below the preview panel. It will create a screenshot in the media panel of Filmora.

Step 13: To access the directory where this screenshot is saved, right-click on the screenshot and click on “Reveal in Explorer.” It will open the folder that contains all the screenshots you take through Filmora. Your Fortnite Thumbnail is ready to be used on your Youtube videos.

Conclusion

With Filmora, there are no limits. You can use your imagination to create amazing Fortnite thumbnails or thumbnails for other purposes. This article is just a demo teaching you how you use Filmora X to develop free and astounding thumbnails. Explore other options and elements of Filmora to take your thumbnails to another level.

Ollie Mattison

Ollie Mattison is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Ollie Mattison

Ollie Mattison

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

To grow a Youtube channel, you need to focus on several different factors and elements. Having an attractive and eye-catching thumbnail is one of those top factors that contribute to the growth of your channel. No matter how good your content is, if you cannot attract users to click on your videos, it will not benefit your channel. In this article, we are going to show you how you can make a Fortnite thumbnail in few simple steps using Filmora X. If you are a content creator and love to make Fortnite videos, then this article will be very helpful for you.

Filmora has recently introduced a new feature named AI Portrait that uses Artificial Intelligence to remove the background from a portrait or image. This feature doesn’t require any green screen to do that. Filmora also contains a wide range of elements and titles that help you enhance the Thumbnail and make look stunning and eye-catching.

---

Step 01: To start making a Fortnite thumbnail, it is important to have a screenshot of your gameplay. We can make a perfect screenshot using Fortnite Replay Mode. If you have recently played a Fortnite match, you can access its replay under the Career tab. Under the Career tab select Replays.

Step 02: If you are using a console, the game will only store 10 recent gameplays, but if you are using a PC, it will store 100 recent gameplays in this section. From all these gameplays, select the one that you want to use for the Thumbnail. Once you choose gameplay, you can control everything in it. The angle, speed, and camera mode.

Step 03: For creating a perfect thumbnail, select “Drone Free Camera” mode from the camera mode located on the bottom right corner of the screen. It will allow us to change the angle the way we want. Choose an angle of your choice and take the screenshot.

Step 04: Open Filmora X, make sure to select the 16:9 screen ratio. Import the screenshot using the import button.

Step 05: Drag and drop the screenshot into the timeline.

Step 06: Now, let’s separate the background and character. Go to the Effects, then AI Portrait, select Human Segmentation, and drop it into the screenshot.

Step 07: Filmora will ask you to purchase it, but you can now hit “Try it” to use it.

Step 08: It will remove the background of the screenshot.

Step 09: To add a background, go to the media and navigate to “Sample Color.” Drag a color of your choice and drop it below the screenshot.

Step 10: To add titles in the Thumbnail, go to the Titles tab. Here you can find several categories of titles. Find your preferred title and drop it above all the layers. You can choose titles, lower thirds, and other texts depending upon your need and requirement.

Step 11: We can make this Fortnite Thumbnail look more attractive by adding elements such as stickers and icons. Filmora contains a wide range of stickers. To access them, navigate to the Elements tab. Here you can find so many categories of elements. Choose any elements according to your need and drop them in the timeline above all other layers. If you cannot find a suitable sticker, you can download one from the internet and use it by importing it into Filmora.

Step 12: Once you are satisfied with the final results, you can take the screenshot of the Thumbnail using the Snapshot icon located below the preview panel. It will create a screenshot in the media panel of Filmora.

Step 13: To access the directory where this screenshot is saved, right-click on the screenshot and click on “Reveal in Explorer.” It will open the folder that contains all the screenshots you take through Filmora. Your Fortnite Thumbnail is ready to be used on your Youtube videos.

Conclusion

With Filmora, there are no limits. You can use your imagination to create amazing Fortnite thumbnails or thumbnails for other purposes. This article is just a demo teaching you how you use Filmora X to develop free and astounding thumbnails. Explore other options and elements of Filmora to take your thumbnails to another level.

Ollie Mattison

Ollie Mattison is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Ollie Mattison

Ollie Mattison

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

To grow a Youtube channel, you need to focus on several different factors and elements. Having an attractive and eye-catching thumbnail is one of those top factors that contribute to the growth of your channel. No matter how good your content is, if you cannot attract users to click on your videos, it will not benefit your channel. In this article, we are going to show you how you can make a Fortnite thumbnail in few simple steps using Filmora X. If you are a content creator and love to make Fortnite videos, then this article will be very helpful for you.

Filmora has recently introduced a new feature named AI Portrait that uses Artificial Intelligence to remove the background from a portrait or image. This feature doesn’t require any green screen to do that. Filmora also contains a wide range of elements and titles that help you enhance the Thumbnail and make look stunning and eye-catching.

---

Step 01: To start making a Fortnite thumbnail, it is important to have a screenshot of your gameplay. We can make a perfect screenshot using Fortnite Replay Mode. If you have recently played a Fortnite match, you can access its replay under the Career tab. Under the Career tab select Replays.

Step 02: If you are using a console, the game will only store 10 recent gameplays, but if you are using a PC, it will store 100 recent gameplays in this section. From all these gameplays, select the one that you want to use for the Thumbnail. Once you choose gameplay, you can control everything in it. The angle, speed, and camera mode.

Step 03: For creating a perfect thumbnail, select “Drone Free Camera” mode from the camera mode located on the bottom right corner of the screen. It will allow us to change the angle the way we want. Choose an angle of your choice and take the screenshot.

Step 04: Open Filmora X, make sure to select the 16:9 screen ratio. Import the screenshot using the import button.

Step 05: Drag and drop the screenshot into the timeline.

Step 06: Now, let’s separate the background and character. Go to the Effects, then AI Portrait, select Human Segmentation, and drop it into the screenshot.

Step 07: Filmora will ask you to purchase it, but you can now hit “Try it” to use it.

Step 08: It will remove the background of the screenshot.

Step 09: To add a background, go to the media and navigate to “Sample Color.” Drag a color of your choice and drop it below the screenshot.

Step 10: To add titles in the Thumbnail, go to the Titles tab. Here you can find several categories of titles. Find your preferred title and drop it above all the layers. You can choose titles, lower thirds, and other texts depending upon your need and requirement.

Step 11: We can make this Fortnite Thumbnail look more attractive by adding elements such as stickers and icons. Filmora contains a wide range of stickers. To access them, navigate to the Elements tab. Here you can find so many categories of elements. Choose any elements according to your need and drop them in the timeline above all other layers. If you cannot find a suitable sticker, you can download one from the internet and use it by importing it into Filmora.

Step 12: Once you are satisfied with the final results, you can take the screenshot of the Thumbnail using the Snapshot icon located below the preview panel. It will create a screenshot in the media panel of Filmora.

Step 13: To access the directory where this screenshot is saved, right-click on the screenshot and click on “Reveal in Explorer.” It will open the folder that contains all the screenshots you take through Filmora. Your Fortnite Thumbnail is ready to be used on your Youtube videos.

Conclusion

With Filmora, there are no limits. You can use your imagination to create amazing Fortnite thumbnails or thumbnails for other purposes. This article is just a demo teaching you how you use Filmora X to develop free and astounding thumbnails. Explore other options and elements of Filmora to take your thumbnails to another level.

Ollie Mattison

Ollie Mattison is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Ollie Mattison

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