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A custom layout is a Tella preset you’ve rearranged (moving or resizing the camera and screen) and saved with Save as favorite in Customize layout. Saved layouts appear in the Favorites tab of the Layout picker so you can reuse them in every video.

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Create a custom layout

  1. Start with any Tella layout (such as Side-by-Side) from the Presets tab of the layout picker.
  2. Open Customize layout to tweak the layout’s style, camera position, and screen fit.
  3. Click on one or both layers (camera and/or screen) on the canvas and move or resize them to your desired arrangement.
  4. When you’re satisfied, give the layout a name in the Save as favorite form at the top of the Customize layout panel and click Save.
  5. Your saved layout now appears in the Favorites tab of the layout picker.
You can experiment with different arrangements before saving. Take your time to get the positioning and sizing exactly how you want it.
When you customize a preset, each layer keeps the corner shape it had in that preset. For example, a preset that gives the camera square corners while the screen follows your Shape setting stays that way after you resize it. Changing Shape later applies the new shape to every layer of the custom layout.

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Change the camera shape

You can change your camera’s shape without resetting the position or size of your custom layout:
  1. Right-click the camera layer on the canvas.
  2. Open Shape.
  3. Choose Circle, Square, Landscape, Portrait, or Cut-out.
Tella reshapes the camera around its current position and keeps it inside the canvas. Cut-out removes the frame and your camera background entirely, so only you remain. See Remove your camera background with Cut out. The change applies to the current layout section, which you can then save to your Favorites.

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Change how your screen fits

You can change the framing of a screen layer without returning to a preset layout:
  1. Right-click the screen layer on the canvas.
  2. Open Screen fit and choose:
    • Fill to fill the layer’s frame. Tella crops the edges when the screen and frame have different aspect ratios.
    • Fit to show the entire screen. Tella adds space around it when the aspect ratios differ.
  3. Select Full screen from the same menu to expand the layer across the canvas. Select it again to return the layer to a centered, inset frame.
Changing either option keeps the current section as a custom layout. You can continue moving or resizing its layers, then save the result to your Favorites.

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What happens to media when I apply a saved layout?

Saved custom layouts keep media already in the slots they use when you apply them to a section. If the saved layout has no Camera slot, media in that slot is removed. A saved ordinary preset clears the section’s media. On camera-only, screen-only, and uploaded clips, a Media favorite keeps media and changes its arrangement; on screen-and-camera clips, favorited Media presets behave like ordinary preset favorites and clear the media. You can also:
  • Apply saved layouts as the base layout for the current clip, then use Apply to all clips when you want the same layout on other compatible clips.
  • Add them to specific sections by clicking and dragging on the timeline.
  • The video transitions smoothly between different layouts.

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Use a favorite as the starting layout for new recordings

When you apply a saved favorite to the base layout of a screen-and-camera clip, Tella remembers it as your starting layout for future screen-and-camera recordings. This also works if the favorite hides your screen or camera. Applying it to a layout section for just part of a clip does not change the starting layout.
  1. Open a screen-and-camera clip in the editor and click Layout.
  2. Click an empty part of the Layout timeline so you’re editing the clip’s main layout, not a layout section you’ve added.
  3. Open Favorites and choose your saved layout.
Hiding a source by hand without applying a favorite does not make that hidden-source layout your starting layout for new recordings. To reuse it, save the arrangement to Favorites and apply the favorite to the base layout.

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Rename, reorder, or remove saved layouts

Open the Favorites tab in the layout picker to see every layout you’ve saved. You can drag tiles in the grid to reorder them, helpful for grouping related layouts or keeping your most-used arrangements at the top. Hover a tile and open its More actions (⋯) menu:
  • Customize: Apply the saved layout to the current section and reopen Customize layout so you can keep tweaking it.
  • Rename: Change its name inline.
  • Remove from favorites: Remove the saved layout from your Favorites.
To update a saved layout rather than saving a copy:
  • Updating an existing layout: When you customize a section that originated from one of your saved layouts, the Customize panel shows an “Or update <name>?” shortcut next to the save form. Click it to overwrite the existing saved layout with your new arrangement instead of creating a duplicate.

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Custom layouts and cropping

Custom layouts preserve their design intent across different aspect ratios. When you create a layout with one aspect ratio and then crop your screen recording to a different ratio (such as 4:3 or 16:9), the relationship between your camera and screen layers remains consistent. This means you don’t need to create separate layouts for each aspect ratio. One custom layout works across all your screen recordings, regardless of their dimensions.

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Apply to all clips

Apply to all clips works with any layout, including your saved custom layouts. It copies the current clip’s layout to every other clip of the same type (camera-only, screen and camera, etc.) in one click. A significant time-saver for longer videos with multiple clips. To use it with a saved layout:
  1. Apply your saved layout to the current clip from the Favorites tab, making sure you’re editing the clip’s main layout (not a layout section you’ve added).
  2. Open Customize layout and, under Base layout, click Apply to all clips. You can also right-click an empty part of the Layout timeline and choose Apply to all clips from there.
If you need certain clips to use different layouts, you can override them individually after applying to all.

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Creative layout ideas

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Camera backdrop layout

Create a layout where your camera fills the entire background with your screen overlay in the foreground:
  1. Start with a standard layout
  2. Right-click the camera layer and select Send to back
  3. Enlarge the camera layer significantly and position it to frame yourself on one side
  4. Resize and position the screen layer in the remaining space
This creates a dynamic look with your full camera view as a backdrop.

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50/50 split screen

Create a full-screen split with camera on one side and screen on the other:
  1. Start with a TV Presenter layout
  2. Move the camera layer to occupy roughly half the canvas
  3. Use the screen cropping tool to crop your recording to fit the remaining space
  4. Adjust positioning as needed
Note: This layout works best when you plan ahead and record your screen content in a narrower window or area, ensuring important content stays visible in the cropped space.

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Which clips and canvas sizes support custom layouts?

Custom layouts work with:
  • Camera-only clips
  • Screen-only clips
  • All canvas aspect ratios (16:9, 16:10, 4:3, 1:1, 4:5, 9:16)
Experiment with different arrangements to find styles that match your brand and make your videos stand out.
Last modified on September 28, 2026