Android Camera Samples Catalog

A single, stand-alone Android app that showcases the Camera2 and CameraX APIs through a catalog of small, self-contained, Compose-first samples. Each sample focuses on one feature and reuses a shared camera-scaffolding layer, so adding a new sample means writing the feature — not the boilerplate.

Screenshots

The home catalog in the "Console" theme — a violet accent, monospace metadata, a bordered featured card, and a dense 2-column grid. The filter pills narrow the catalog by category, and samples are grouped CameraX-first, Camera2 below.

   

How to run

1. Clone the repository.
2. Open it in a recent Android Studio.
3. Run the app configuration on a device or emulator. Camera-dependent samples (extensions, slow-motion, ML) behave best on a physical device; emulators with a virtual camera cover the basics.

No Firebase / google-services.json is required.

Samples

Filter the catalog by category (Images / Video / ML / Graphics / Extensions / Controls) on the home screen. Within each view, CameraX samples are listed first and Camera2 below.

Sample	API	What it shows
Take a Photo	CameraX / Camera2	Preview, tap-to-focus, capture a still
Take a Video	CameraX (Recorder) / Camera2 (MediaRecorder)	Record video to DCIM/Camera
Pause/Resume	CameraX (Recorder)	Pause and resume a recording mid-capture
Slow Motion	Camera2	High-speed (constrained) recording
HDR Video	CameraX / Camera2	Record & play back 10-bit HDR video (DynamicRange / DynamicRangeProfiles)
Video Stabilization	CameraX	Steadier footage via preview + video stabilization
Flip While Recording	CameraX	Switch front/back cameras without interrupting the recording
QR Scanner	CameraX / Camera2 + ML Kit	Real-time barcode/QR detection with overlay
Image Labeling	CameraX + ML Kit	Real-time on-device labels via ImageAnalysis
Luminosity	CameraX	Scene-brightness meter from the ImageAnalysis Y plane
Green Screen	CameraX + ML Kit	Concurrent cameras: segment the front-camera subject over the live back camera
Extensions	CameraX / Camera2	Night / Bokeh / HDR / Face Retouch / Auto
Ultra HDR	CameraX	Gain-map Ultra HDR (JPEG_R) capture + a viewer to compare SDR / gain map / Ultra HDR
Effects	CameraX	Live color filters (grayscale, sepia, invert, …) via ImageAnalysis + ColorMatrix
Viewfinder Effects	Camera2	Real-time frame processing on the live preview
Concurrent Camera	CameraX	Front + back preview at once (picture-in-picture)
RAW / DNG	Camera2	RAW_SENSOR → DNG via DngCreator, then an in-app viewer/editor (re-expose, re-white-balance)
Zoom & Torch	CameraX / Camera2	Zoom ratio slider + torch toggle
Exposure	CameraX	Exposure-compensation slider
Low-Light Boost	CameraX	Brighten dark scenes with CameraControl low-light boost
Feature Combination	CameraX	Query & apply CameraX feature-group combos (HDR, 60fps, stabilization, Ultra HDR)
Manual Controls	Camera2	Manual ISO / shutter / focus distance

Samples that depend on optional hardware (extensions, high-speed recording, manual sensor) detect support at runtime and show a friendly "not supported on this device" state instead of crashing.

Architecture

Every sample is a Gradle library module under samples/{api}-{feature}/ (package com.android.{api}.{feature}) exposing a single {Api}{Feature}Screen() composable. It follows the layered, unidirectional pattern in android_architecture.md:

• {Feature}UiState — a sealed interface of states (Initial, feature states, Error).
• {Feature}ViewModel — a @HiltViewModel exposing a single StateFlow<UiState>; no Android/lifecycle references.
• {Feature}Controller — a @Stable state-holder that owns the camera SDK lifecycle, created with a remember{Feature}Controller(...) composable.
• {Feature}Screen — collects state with collectAsStateWithLifecycle, wraps everything in the shared scaffold, and renders with a when(state).

Shared modules

The scaffolding that used to be copy-pasted into every sample lives in three shared modules, so a new sample focuses only on its feature:

• :core-theme — the design system: the Material 3 color scheme with the violet "Console" accent, Space Grotesk / Space Mono typography (via Google Fonts), and the AISampleCatalogTheme wrapper.
• :core-camera — camera plumbing: BaseCamera2Controller (background thread, open/close, viewfinder transform, tap-to-focus, session creation), Camera2Preview / CameraXPreview, ImageUtils (Image/ImageProxy → Bitmap), MediaStoreSaver, rememberDisplayRotation(), and CameraPermissions. It re-exports the common CameraX/Camera2 libraries.
• :core-ui — API-agnostic Compose chrome: CameraSampleScaffold (permission flow + surface), the viewfinder HUD (FocusIndicator reticle, RuleOfThirdsGrid, ViewfinderTitleChip, TorchChip), ShutterButton / RecordButton / CameraControlsBar / ScrimIconButton, ValueSlider / ZoomControls, CapturedImagePreview / CapturedVideoPreview / VideoPlayer, the SettingsOverlay menu, and the loading / error / unsupported state views. It re-exports :core-camera and :core-theme.

A sample is registered in one place — a SampleCatalogItem in SampleCatalog.kt — and the app's NavHost is derived from that list automatically.

Adding a new sample

Use the generator, which scaffolds a working (preview-only) compose-first module and wires it into the build and catalog:

./gradlew createSample \
  -PsampleName="camera2-flash" \
  -PscreenName="Camera2FlashScreen" \
  -Ptitle="Camera2 • Flash" \
  -Pdesc="Toggle the flash with Camera2" \
  -Ptype="camera2"          # camera2 (default) or camerax

./gradlew spotlessApply      # format the generated files

Then implement the feature in the generated Controller / Screen and re-sync Gradle.

Code style

The project is formatted with Spotless (ktlint + Apache license headers). Run ./gradlew spotlessApply before committing.