Harnessing Android Camera Capabilities with CameraView Library

Robert Harris -

In the realm of Android development, capturing moments through photos or videos is a quintessential feature for many applications. The CameraView library, an open-source project by the androidx.camera team, serves as a robust scaffold for developers looking to integrate camera functionalities in their Android applications with ease and efficiency. Utilizing the elegance of Kotlin and the simplicity of Jetpack Compose, CameraView makes the implementation of camera features a breeze.

Here are the key functionalities offered by the CameraView library:

  1. Photography: Capture high-quality photos with a simple command.
  2. Videography: Record videos seamlessly within your application.
  3. Camera Preview: Preview the camera feed in real-time.
  4. Customizable Camera Parameters: Tweak camera parameters to suit your application's needs.

Integrating CameraView into your Android project is straightforward, requiring only the addition of the following dependency:

dependencies {
    implementation 'androidx.camera:camera-view:1.1.0-alpha04'
}

Below is a brief code snippet demonstrating the ease of using CameraView:

// Create CameraView
val cameraView = CameraView(this)

// Set camera parameters
cameraView.setLifecycleOwner(this)
cameraView.setFacing(CameraView.FACING_BACK)
cameraView.setFlashMode(CameraView.FLASH_MODE_AUTO)

// Start preview
cameraView.startPreview()

// Capture a photo
cameraView.takePicture()

// Start recording
cameraView.startRecording()

// Stop recording
cameraView.stopRecording()

Executing this code will display a camera preview. With a simple click, you can capture photos or start recording videos. Beyond the basics, CameraView allows for extensive customization of camera parameters as shown below:

// Set camera parameters
cameraView.setLifecycleOwner(this)
cameraView.setFacing(CameraView.FACING_BACK)
cameraView.setFlashMode(CameraView.FLASH_MODE_AUTO)

// Set camera resolution
cameraView.setResolution(Size(1080, 1920))

// Set frame rate
cameraView.setFrameRate(30)

// Set zoom level
cameraView.setZoom(1.0f)