01
Chat can’t see what you mean
“Top left, no, further left” eats the moment. Viewers need you to point.
For live streams
Draw on stream, without breaking flow.
On stream there’s no time to open a menu. PenLayer is one hotkey away: press ⌥⇧D, circle the thing chat asked about, press it again and carry on.
Download for Mac
Free for 14 days · then from $12/yr
Works with
- OBS
- Streamlabs
- Twitch
- YouTube Live
- Restream
- Ecamm Live
OBS · Display Capture ● LIVE
The problem
Why it’s harder than it should be.
02
Overlays are fiddly
Scene-based annotation needs setting up in advance and doesn’t follow what’s actually on screen.
03
Tools that grab focus
Anything that steals your clicks or pops up a window in the middle of a stream is a liability.
How PenLayer helps
The tools you’ll reach for.
One hotkey
⌥⇧D works whatever has focus, and it’s never a ⌘ shortcut, so it won’t clash with your game or apps.
Quick, readable ink
Thick, pressure-shaped strokes that survive stream compression.
Circle it for chat
Answer “where?” in a second, then clear it and move on.
Gone in one key
⌥⇧C clears everything; stopping drawing clears it too.
Set up in a minute
Three steps.
- 1
Capture your display in OBS
Use a Display Capture source so the ink is included.
- 2
Press ⌥⇧D to draw
The toolbar slides out; pick a colour and draw.
- 3
Press ⌥⇧D to stop
Clicks go back to what you were doing, and the ink clears.
Tips
From experience.
- !
Use Display Capture, not Window Capture: the drawing sits above your windows.
- !
Pick a colour that contrasts with your overlay and brand, and use the thickest weight (]) for readability.
- !
Park the toolbar on an edge your stream layout covers, so it stays out of shot when it’s tucked away.
Questions
Live streaming, answered.
Does it work with OBS? +
Yes, with a Display Capture source. PenLayer draws on the screen, so capturing the display includes the ink.
Will the hotkey interfere with games or other apps? +
Start/stop is ⌥⇧D, deliberately not a ⌘ shortcut. You can record any other chord in Preferences if it clashes.
Does it slow my Mac down while streaming? +
PenLayer only draws when you draw. While idle it’s a small handle on the screen edge and passes your clicks straight through.
Also used for
Try it on your next stream.
Free for 14 days, everything on. No card, no account.