How to see yourself on your Mac camera before joining a meeting
You can see yourself before a meeting by opening NotchStar’s Mirror tab. It shows a live, flipped preview of your Mac’s default camera in the notch, with no extra window, no photo and no meeting. Apple’s Photo Booth does a similar job in a full window, as the camera check guide explains.
What happens when you open it
- Open the notch and choose Mirror.
- If macOS has not asked before, it shows its normal camera permission prompt. Allow it.
- The preview appears. The camera starts when the tab opens, so the green light comes on at that moment.
- Switch to another tab or move away so the notch closes. The camera stops, and the light goes out.
That behaviour is deliberate. NotchStar’s code starts the camera session when the Mirror view appears and stops it when the view disappears, so the light matches what you are doing. The picture is never saved or sent anywhere.
When you only have a few seconds
A quick check is enough for four things: your face is in the frame, the light is on your face and not behind you, the camera is not tilted up your nose, and nothing in the background that you did not mean to show. If something is wrong, move the screen or a lamp rather than looking for a software setting.
If the preview is blank or says access is needed
Mirror shows a card with a button that opens the Camera page of System Settings. Allow NotchStar there. Apple’s camera access page, checked on 2 November 2026, explains that the list shows apps that asked for the camera. Allowing NotchStar does not allow your meeting app, which has its own entry.
What Mirror does not do
- No recording and no photos. It is a preview only.
- No camera picker. It uses the camera macOS picks as the default. If your meeting app uses a different one, open that app’s preview as well.
- No filters, background blur or lighting fixes.
- No sound check. Your microphone is a separate setting in the meeting app.
Pair it with a rehearsal
If you will read from a script, switch from Mirror to the Teleprompter and read a paragraph aloud while watching how far your eyes move. You can go back and forth between the two tabs. The Mirror feature page lists every limit in one place.
