For videos or recorded live streams, api.video offers you two ways to add a thumbnail:
Upload an image as a thumbnail
Choose a timecode in your video and use that as the thumbnail
This guide walks you through both methods for setting up a thumbnail for videos.
If you want to add a thumbnail to a live stream, the only available method is to upload a picture you choose. You can read more about this in the Add or delete a live stream thumbnail guide.
You have the option to choose a photo that's in .jpg, .png, or .webp format. It must be 8MB or smaller. To send your file, add the path to where it's stored and open it in binary. Then you can upload it with the client of your choice or see how it works with cURL.
Pick a thumbnail
If you don't want to create a custom thumbnail image for your video, you can select one from the video itself. All you need to do is choose the timecode to the frame you want to be the thumbnail. The format is ISO 8601, and represents - HH:MM:SS:mm - hours, minutes, seconds, milliseconds.
Add a thumbnail from the dashboard
api.video also makes it possible for you to add a thumbnail from the dashboard. Both choices discussed in this guide are available here too - Timestamp and Upload image.
To get to the area to add a thumbnail in the dashboard:
Choose a video by clicking on its title from your list of videos.
Click See details.
To add a frame from the video, click Timestamp. Enter the timestamp for the frame you want as the thumbnail in the field. Represent it as HH:MM:SS (hours, minutes, seconds). Click Set.
If you're adding an image, the same constraints apply as they do when you use the API. Click Upload image. Then click on the display for the video under Upload image. You'll be able to browse and upload. Alternatively, you can drag and drop a photo onto the video, and that will trigger an upload as well.
Conclusion
There are two ways to add thumbnails - adding an image or choosing a frame from the video. Adding an image as the thumbnail is great if you want to do special branding for your video, or other elements.