Using The Webcam in Your Laptop to Take Photos

Co-authored by Rain Kengly Reviewed by Luigi Oppido

Last Updated: October 15, 2024 Fact Checked

If your PC laptop or MacBook has a built-in webcam, you can use it to take a photo. You can easily do this by using the Camera app in Windows 10 or by using the Photo Booth app on a Mac. Whether you want to take a selfie or catalogue certain objects, you'll only need to follow a few simple steps to snap a photo using your laptop's built-in camera. This wikiHow will teach you two simple ways to use your Windows or Mac computer's webcam to take a picture.

How to Take Pictures on a Computer

Most laptops have built-in web cameras. If you don't have a camera in your laptop, you can connect an external USB camera.
You can only take photos of objects facing your built-in webcam unless you have an external webcam that can be adjusted.
Webcam photos tends to be much lower quality than smartphone, tablet, or DSLR pictures.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

On a Windows Laptop

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Make sure your computer has a webcam. If your laptop has a built-in webcam as most do, you can easily take a photo. If not, however, you'll need to install a webcam on your computer before continuing.^{[1]
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- Some laptops have a physical shutter that you can toggle back and forth across the lens. Before taking a photo, check the camera lens (typically at the top-center part of the screen) and make sure the shutter is open.
Click the Windows logo in the bottom-left corner of the screen, or press the Windows key on your keyboard.^{[2]
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This will search your computer for the Camera app, which allows you to take a photo with any attached camera.^{[3]
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Click Camera. It's a white, camera-shaped icon at the top of the Start window. Doing so will open your Windows Camera app.^{[4]
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- Make sure to activate your camera with the proper permissions.
A light next to your camera should come on once the camera is on, and you should see yourself in the Camera app's window.
You should see your photograph subject's image on the screen.
This camera-shaped icon is at the bottom of the Camera app window. Doing so will take a photo and save it to your Windows computer's Photographs app.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

On a MacBook

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Click the magnifying glass icon in the top-right corner of the screen.
This will search your Mac for the Photo Booth app.
It's the top result beneath the Spotlight search bar. Doing so will open your Mac's Photo Booth.
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Wait for your Mac's camera to turn on. When your Mac's camera is on, there will be a green light next to it.
- You should also see yourself appear on-screen in Photo Booth once the camera is on.
Anything that appears in the main Photo Booth window will be a part of your photo, so feel free to adjust as needed based on what shows in the Photo Booth window.^{[5]
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Click the "Capture" button. This red-and-white camera button is at the bottom of the page. Doing so will take the picture and add it to your Mac's Photos app.^{[6]
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- If you have an iPhone or iPad with Photo Stream enabled, the photo will also appear on your iPhone or iPad.
- You can add extra effects in Photo Booth such as a customized background.

Community Q&A

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Question

Are there any apps that will take a photograph of whomever turns on my laptop?

Alfonso.is.write

Community Answer

Try out Mouse Lock. It takes a picture of whoever tries to intrude your privacy and sends it to your gmail account.

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My camera on my laptop takes a picture of me, but how do I take pictures of things in front of me?

Community Answer

Most laptops do not have an outward-facing camera, so you would have to turn your laptop around so that the screen was facing whatever you wanted to take a picture of.

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How do I connect my camera to a laptop?

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To connect your camera to a laptop, you'll need to use the USB cable that came with your camera. Connect the mini-USB end of the cable to the USB port on your digital camera. Then, plug the other end of the cable into one of the USB ports on your laptop. Most laptops will detect connected devices automatically, prompting you with options on how to proceed. If the laptop does not detect the camera automatically, you can open your media management software to access the media on the camera.

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Windows 7 computers will require you to use the camera's dedicated app (for example, a camera monitored by CyberLink YouCam would have an app entitled "YouCam" or something similar). If you aren't sure of your camera's name, try typing "camera" into Start, or look up your computer's model number to see what kind of camera it uses.

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