Photos

session.camera.takePhoto captures a still on glasses that have a camera, like Mentra Live. It resolves after the photo is captured and uploaded, and hands you back a download URL.

src/background/index.ts

import { registerMiniapp } from "@mentra/miniapp/background";

registerMiniapp((session) => {
  session.input.onButtonPress(async () => {
    if (!session.capabilities?.hasCamera) return;
    const photo = await session.camera.takePhoto();
    session.display.render([{type: "image", id: "photo", box: {x: 144, y: 44, w: 288, h: 200}, data: photo.photoUrl}]);
  });
});

Camera needs the CAMERA permission and glasses with a camera. Declare a CAMERA permission in your manifest so the call is allowed, and a CAMERA hardware requirement so the miniapp only installs on glasses that can capture. Check session.capabilities.hasCamera before calling so you don’t fire a request the glasses can’t satisfy.

Take a photo

takePhoto sends the request, waits while the glasses capture and the phone uploads, then resolves with the photo metadata. The returned photoUrl is a signed download URL with a short TTL (about 30 minutes), so fetch or display it soon after.

const photo = await session.camera.takePhoto({ size: "high", sound: false });
// photo.photoUrl  – signed URL, ~30 min TTL
// photo.mimeType  – e.g. "image/jpeg"
// photo.size      – bytes

All options are optional. The defaults are listed below.

Option	Type	Default	What it does
`size`	`"low" \| "medium" \| "high" \| "max"`	`"medium"`	Capture resolution.
`transferMethod`	`"auto" \| "direct" \| "ble"`	`"auto"`	Use `"direct"` for webhook upload without BLE fallback, or `"ble"` to always relay through the phone.
`compress`	`"none" \| "low" \| "medium" \| "high"`	`"none"`	JPEG compression applied before upload.
`sound`	`boolean`	`true`	Play a shutter sound on the glasses.
`saveToGallery`	`boolean`	`false`	Keep a copy in the glasses gallery.
`exposureTimeNs`	`number`	auto	Manual shutter time in nanoseconds. Honored only on cameras with manual exposure; ignored otherwise. Omit to auto-expose.

Unknown runtime transferMethod values are rejected instead of being treated as "auto". The result is a PhotoTaken:

Field	Type	Description
`requestId`	`string`	Correlates the request with ASG status and upload logs.
`photoUrl`	`string`	Signed download URL for the captured image (~30 min TTL).
`mimeType`	`string`	MIME type of the image, e.g. `"image/jpeg"`.
`size`	`number`	Image size in bytes.

Field of view

setFov applies a temporary FOV/ROI override owned by the calling miniapp and resolves after the ASG client reports it was applied. It applies to all captures (photos and video) while that miniapp is active. When the miniapp closes, the host restores the previous live miniapp override or the persistent base setting. The factory/missing base is the centered standard preset (102 degrees); existing saved user values are preserved.

// A named preset. The simplest option, always center ROI.
await session.camera.setFov({ preset: "wide" });

// Or an explicit horizontal FOV with a region.
await session.camera.setFov({ fov: 102, roiPosition: "bottom" });

The argument is one of two shapes:

Field	Type	Notes
`preset`	`"narrow" \| "standard" \| "wide"`	Named preset. Uses center ROI. Mutually exclusive with `fov`/`roiPosition`.
`fov`	`number`	Horizontal FOV in degrees. Pair with `roiPosition`.
`roiPosition`	`"center" \| "bottom" \| "top"`	Region position for the `fov` form. Defaults to `"center"`.

It resolves with a CameraFovResult:

Field	Type	Description
`requestId`	`string`	Correlates the request with ASG logs.
`fov`	`number`	The applied horizontal FOV in degrees.
`roiPosition`	`"center" \| "bottom" \| "top"`	The applied region position.
`timestamp`	`number`	When the setting was applied.

Errors

Every method returns a promise that rejects with { code, message } on failure. Wrap calls in try/catch and read code.

Code	When
`PERMISSION_NOT_DECLARED`	The miniapp didn’t declare the `CAMERA` permission.
`REQUEST_ABORTED`	The request timed out, or the session was torn down before it completed.
`INTERNAL`	The phone-side handler threw. The glasses have no camera, capture or upload failed, or another device error occurred. Read `message`.

try {
  const photo = await session.camera.takePhoto();
  session.display.render([{type: "image", id: "photo", box: {x: 144, y: 44, w: 288, h: 200}, data: photo.photoUrl}]);
} catch (err) {
  if (err.code === "PERMISSION_NOT_DECLARED") {
    session.display.render([
      {type: "text", id: "msg", box: {x: 0, y: 0, w: 576, h: 288}, text: "Camera permission not granted"},
    ]);
  }
}

For video, see Videos. For live video streaming, see Streaming.

Getting Started

Core Concepts

UI Layer

Display

Audio & Speech

Sensors & Input

Camera

Phone & System

Data

Reference

Take a photo

Field of view

Errors

​Take a photo

​Field of view

​Errors

Take a photo

Field of view

Errors