Since Windows 10 is an operating system designed for both PCs and tablets, there is a Camera application, very similar to that of modern smartphones, which can be used in many ways even on a PC. The Camera app is found pre-installed on every Windows 10 system and can be started directly from the Start menu .
In this guide we see everything there is to know about its use, not only how to take photos and record videos, but also how it can be used for a simple, but immediate, video surveillance system, to check what happens in the room where the computer is found, even if it is miles away.
First of all, to use the Camera app in Windows 10, make sure the monitor's webcam is working and that the drivers are installed.
You can refer to another article for help on how to turn on the webcam (or turn it off when not in use) .
The Camera app can be started, in Windows 10, both from the Start menu and from Cortana, saying the word camera .
The app activates the webcam using it as a camera as if it were a mobile phone.
The first time it is launched, the app may ask for permission to use the webcam, microphone and access the location.
To take a picture in Windows 10 just press the camera key on the right.
The photograph is saved as an image in the Camera Roll folder inside the Images folder.
To know exactly where the photo is saved, open it by clicking on the preview that is created in the left side of the camera, then, from the photo viewer, press the button with the three dots at the top right, go to File info and scroll to the down the left column until you find the link to open the folder where this file has been automatically saved.
You can also record videos from the Camera app .
To do this, press the camera button located above the camera button.
To stop recording tap the same button.
Before taking a photo, you can change the brightness of the image framed by the webcam.
These options are found by tapping the arrow button in the middle at the top of the camera app.
From Pro mode, you can move the brightness slider, located on the right side, to modify it.
You can also take pictures with a timer in Windows 10 .
To do this, you need to press the button with three dots at the top right to find the Photo Timer options and delay the shot for a few seconds or make sure that there are several automatic shots every X seconds.
The button with three dots also accesses the settings of the Camera application
These settings can be more or less depending on the webcam you are using.
For most computers with webcams they should be:
- Ability to change the type of behavior when holding down the Camera button: to record a video, to take photos in series by holding it down or none of this.
- Photo size, if with 16: 9 ratio or the traditional 4: 3.
- Type of grid to see above the frame.
- Video recording quality and flicker reduction (which must remain at 50 Hz).
Under the related settings item you can also change the location where the photos are saved, change the privacy options and allow the camera to access the location of the computer.
We now come to the most interesting part of the article, how easy it is to use this application to monitor a room via computer webcam .
Quite simply, just configure a remote access program to the computer (I use Chrome Remote Desktop) and connect to the computer, even from a mobile phone, to see its desktop.
Once connected, simply open the camera app to see what's going on in the room.
Keeping the computer monitor off hides the fact that we are monitoring that room.
Personally, having a computer in the living room, I often use this method to see what happens in the house in my absence.
