How to Use Your Own Custom Backgrounds With Microsoft Teams Today
Until April 14, Microsoft Teams users had to accept having their actual surroundings appear in their meetings, or a blurred version of it. Not wanting to leave its users jealous of other web conferencing software like Zoom, it released an update to offer some custom backgrounds.
To access it, launch a video call. Then click on the three dots icon on the menu bar. Click on “Show background effects” and a pane will pop out of the right side of the screen. Here, you’ll see a selection of backgrounds Microsoft has made available by default. You can preview the background and then select it.
Not bad, but maybe you want to take it a step further and upload your own images to Microsoft Teams to really personalize your meetings experience. While Microsoft hasn’t added that functionality to the user interface, it’s still possible to add your own images to the mix. Here’s how:
- Copy this string: %APPDATA%\Microsoft\Teams\Backgrounds
- Open file explorer. Paste the string into the address bar.
- You should see some of the background images supplied by Microsoft in this folder. There should also be an “Uploads” folder. If not, create one.
- Add images you want to use to the “Uploads” folder. Optimal resolution for your images is 1920x1080.
- Now you will be able to see your images in the backgrounds pane within Teams. Select it and apply it!
Source: Info-Tech’s innovation team organizes their custom backgrounds in Microsoft Teams.
Our Take
The option to customize your background is a must-have feature for web conferencing. It allows users to express themselves in a new way and it opens up interesting possibilities for corporate branding around webinars and consulting sessions. Microsoft Teams users are sure to enjoy the new capability.