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Recording multiple sources in OBS

APRIL 11, 2025

Written with ChatGPT 4o.

I recently ran into a workflow challenge while recording video content: I wanted to capture both my camera feed and my screen display, but instead of overlaying them in OBS (as is typical for live streaming), I wanted to record them separately so I could later compose them freely in DaVinci Resolve. My goal was to keep both sources clean and flexible for editing—ideal for adding effects, cuts, or repositioning in post.

This post is the result of a conversation I had with ChatGPT 4o, and it really helped me streamline this process.

Here's what I wanted to do.

  • Record both camera and screen in OBS.
  • Avoid overlaying them live.
  • Import both into DaVinci Resolve as separate video sources.
  • Compose freely in the timeline (resize, reposition, etc).

And here's the solution proposed by ChatGPT.

There are two main ways to approach this, depending on how much control you want:

Option 1: Record Side-by-Side in OBS, Split Later with FFmpeg

  1. Set up OBS canvas with camera and screen next to each other (e.g. camera on the right, display on the left).
  2. Record the session as a single video file.
  3. Use ffmpeg to split that file into two separate videos.

Example FFmpeg command:

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -filter_complex "[0:v]crop=960:1080:0:0[left]; [0:v]crop=960:1080:960:0[right]" -map "[left]" display.mp4 -map "[right]" camera.mp4

Adjust the resolution and crop values depending on your canvas layout.

Option 2: Record Each Source Separately Using OBS Plugin

Use the Source Record plugin for OBS:

  1. Install Source Record.
  2. Add it to your camera source and configure it to record to a separate file.
  3. Do the same for your display capture.
  4. You can still record a full composite if you want, but each input gets its own clean file.

This approach is cleaner and better if you plan to edit often.

🛠 Bonus: Compose in DaVinci Resolve

  1. Import both resulting video files.
  2. Drop them into your timeline on separate tracks.
  3. Resize, crop, and position however you like.

That’s it! This workflow gives me much more flexibility when editing content—especially for tutorials, interviews, or any scenario where I want to fine-tune the composition in post. Hope this helps!

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