How to add a camera shake effect in OBS

The short answer

A standard OBS Studio installation has no dedicated camera shake filter. To make your camera image shake live, you need a third-party plugin. One kind animates the source's position. The other applies a shader, which is a small graphics program that changes the image frame by frame. Shake needs some empty margin around the image, so you also enlarge the camera source slightly. That way, the moving edges never reveal the canvas behind it.

Check which problem you have first. This guide covers adding a deliberate shake for comedy, impact moments or stylized scenes. If your real camera image is already shaky and you want to remove that movement, the fix is a different one. OBS does not ship with video stabilization, so steady the camera physically with a tripod, a stable mount or a desk that doesn't transmit typing vibrations.

Which method to use

• Motion plugin: moves the camera source around the canvas in small steps. It suits short, triggered shakes, such as a jolt when something happens on screen. Setup is mostly done in menus.
• Shader plugin: displaces the image inside the source itself. It suits continuous or finely tuned shake. You either use a shader file someone else has written or edit one yourself.
• Editing software: if the shake only needs to appear in a recorded clip, not live, you can add it afterward in a video editor and skip OBS plugins entirely.

Before you start

• Confirm your camera already shows a live image in the OBS preview. If it doesn't, fix camera access and capture first. A shake effect cannot help a source that isn't delivering video.
• Note your OBS version under Help > About. Install only a plugin build that states support for that version, because plugins built for other versions may fail to load.
• Back up your setup with Scene Collection > Export, so you can restore it if a plugin misbehaves.
• Close OBS before you install a plugin, then reopen it so the plugin loads.

Step 1: Give the image room to move

• 1. Optional: create a separate scene that contains only your camera source. Then add that scene as a source inside your main scene. This nested scene lets you shake the camera as one unit without disturbing overlays, text or other sources.
• 2. Select the camera source, or the nested scene, and open Edit Transform. You can right-click it and choose Transform > Edit Transform.
• 3. Enlarge it slightly so it extends past every edge of the canvas, and keep it centered.
• 4. Check: in the preview, no black or transparent border should show on any side. Some of the outer image will now be cut off, so make sure your face or subject is still well framed.

Step 2a: Shake with a motion plugin

Motion plugins for OBS, such as the widely used Move plugin, add filters that change a source's position, size or other values over a set duration. Menu names and options vary between plugins and versions, so treat the steps below as a general pattern and follow the labels your plugin actually shows.

• 1. Install the motion plugin and restart OBS.
• 2. Right-click the scene that contains the camera and open Filters. Add the plugin's move or animate filter and point it at the camera source. Some plugins attach the filter to the source itself rather than the scene, so check your plugin's instructions.
• 3. Set a target position a few pixels away from the current one and choose a very short duration. A shake is a series of small, quick offsets.
• 4. Add more filters with different small offsets, including one that returns the source to its original position. If your plugin can chain moves, link each filter to the next so they run in sequence. If it offers a random or repeat mode, you can use that instead.
• 5. Choose how the shake starts. Common options are starting when the filter is enabled or using a hotkey from the plugin or from File > Settings > Hotkeys.
• 6. Check: trigger the shake. The camera should jolt briefly and then settle back exactly where it started, with no border showing at any point.

Step 2b: Shake with a shader filter

• 1. Install a shader filter plugin compatible with your OBS version and restart OBS.
• 2. Right-click the camera source, open Filters, and add the shader filter.
• 3. Load a shader that offsets the image over time. Some plugins include example shaders; otherwise you need one written for that specific plugin. Shader syntax is not shared between plugins.
• 4. Adjust the exposed settings, typically strength and speed, starting small.
• 5. Check: the image should wobble inside its frame without the source's outline moving. If edges smear or repeat, enlarge the source a little more, or lower the strength.

How much shake to use

There are no verified pixel or speed values to recommend. A good setting depends on your canvas resolution, how much you enlarged the source, and the look you want. Start with the smallest movement you can see and increase it gradually. Strong or continuous shake is tiring to watch and can bother viewers who are sensitive to motion. Short bursts are usually easier to watch than shake that never stops.

How to know it worked

Each check below confirms a different part of the chain. Passing one check does not mean the next one will pass too.

• Preview: confirms the effect is set up and triggers correctly. It says nothing about what viewers receive.
• Program view: if you use Studio Mode, confirm the shake also appears after you transition the scene to Program, because that is the output OBS actually sends.
• Test recording: make a short recording and play it back. This confirms the effect is encoded into the output. Fast motion takes more data to encode, so look for blockiness during the shake. If you see it, reduce the shake or raise your recording quality.
• Virtual camera in a call: start the OBS virtual camera, select it as the camera in your call app, and check that app's own preview. This confirms the call app receives the shaken image. It doesn't confirm how the other person sees it, because call apps compress video and may soften or drop quick movement. The only full test is a trial call with someone who can describe what they see.

If your camera is a DSLR or mirrorless camera

The steps are the same however the camera reaches OBS. That could be an HDMI capture card, the manufacturer's webcam utility or a USB connection the camera supports. OBS applies the effect to the source as it receives it. Confirm the camera feed is stable on its own first. Make sure it doesn't drop out because of auto power-off, a screen overlay on the HDMI output or a loose cable. Those problems can look like glitches in the effect when they are really the camera.

Limitations and gaps

• No specific plugin features, version support or settings values were verified for this guide. Check your plugin's own documentation and make sure it supports your OBS version.
• Plugin menu names change between releases, so labels may not match the steps exactly.
• A simulated shake in OBS is not the same as real camera movement. It doesn't add motion blur or change perspective unless the plugin or shader you use says it does.
• How the effect looks in a call depends on the call app and the connection, which OBS can't control.