Navigating a video recording based on changes in views of the recording's visual content is described. A content-based navigation system receives a recording including visual content and audio content. The content-based navigation system then determines a content scale for navigating the recording relative to an overall number of new or updated views of visual content during playback of the recording. Given the content scale, the content-based navigation system generates a content navigation control that enables navigating the recording at a granularity defined by the overall number of new or updated views of the recording's visual content. Navigation via the content navigation control is thus independent of time between changes to views of the recording's visual content during playback. Input to the content navigation control causes output of a different view of the recording's visual content, and optionally causes output of audio content synchronized with the different view of visual content.