Live telestration for your stream, step by step
OBS Studio doesn't have a built-in drawing tool. To draw (or "paint") on your stream, you run a drawing app and bring its output into OBS as a source. Here are the three common ways to do it, which one fits your stream, and a full walkthrough of the browser method.
All three work. The right one depends on what you're drawing on and how often you do it.
| How it works | Good for | Watch out for | |
|---|---|---|---|
| OBS plugin | Installs into OBS and adds a drawing source or dock | Streamers who want drawing inside OBS itself | Manual install into the plugins folder; must match your OBS version |
| Screen annotation app | Draws on top of your whole screen; OBS captures the display | Quick circles and arrows on anything | Generic pens and shapes; drawings sit flat on the screen |
| Browser telestrator window | Draw in a browser app; OBS captures its clean output window | Sports breakdowns and replays | Needs the right capture settings (see fixes below) |
This is how most sports streams handle live telestration without installing anything into OBS.
Load the video or gameplay you'll draw on. In ProPlayVision, that's the X's O's Chalkboard.
Click the OBS output button. A separate window opens that shows only the canvas, with no menus or toolbars.
In your scene, click + under Sources, choose Window Capture, and pick the output window from the list.
On Windows, set Capture Method to Windows 10 (1903 and up). This avoids the black-window problem with browser windows.
Right-click the source → Transform → Fit to screen. Use a 1920×1080 canvas so drawings stay sharp.
Keep the main app on your second monitor and draw there. Your viewers see only the finished drawings in the output window.
Switch the Window Capture method to Windows 10 (1903 and up). If it's still black, turn off hardware acceleration in your browser's settings and restart the browser.
The output window has to be open (not minimized) before OBS can list it. Open it first, then add the source.
Match the output window and your OBS canvas to the same resolution, ideally 1920×1080, and avoid stretching the source.
Capture the clean output window, not the main app window, and uncheck Capture Cursor in the source properties.
Generic drawing tools give you a pen and a few shapes. For a football stream you usually want more: routes that sit on the field at the camera's angle, a spotlight that follows a player, and a replay you can rewind and draw on.
That's what ProPlayVision's OBS telestrator is built for: 84 football tools, DVR replay, player tracking and a one-click output window made for OBS. For game broadcasts, see the football broadcast telestrator.
No. OBS Studio doesn't include a drawing or telestrator tool. You add one with a plugin, a screen annotation app, or a separate telestrator window captured as a source.
Play the video inside your telestrator instead of as an OBS media source, then capture the telestrator's output window. The video and your drawings come through together, and you can pause, draw and play.
Yes, with tools that support a second device. Some telestrators let a tablet draw over a shared view of your screen.
No. A browser telestrator with its own output window works through a standard Window Capture source, with nothing installed into OBS.
Yes, if your telestrator has replay. ProPlayVision's DVR lets you rewind and draw on what just happened. See the OBS telestrator.
X's O's Chalkboard is live. Plans start at $19.99/month, month to month, cancel anytime.