Foto Master

Photo Taken but Preview Not Showing

Updated Today · 3 min read

If your booth captures photos but the preview window stays blank or empty, the issue is almost always one of three things: a missing camera element in the layout, the wrong camera selected in settings, or a lighting/flash problem causing photos to come out completely black. Work through these steps in order.

1. Check the Layout in Layout Builder

The most common cause is a layout that doesn't include a camera element — or where the camera element is covered by an opaque overlay.

Open Layout Builder and verify:

  • The layout includes a Camera element (the live-view placeholder)
  • The camera element is not hidden behind the overlay layer
  • Your overlay file is a transparent PNG — an opaque overlay will cover the photo entirely
  • The camera element's layer order places it above any background, below the overlay cutout

Quick test: Create a blank layout with only a camera element and run a test shot. If the preview now appears, the issue is with your original layout design — not the hardware or software.

2. Verify the Correct Camera Is Selected

In FMX, go to Global Settings → Camera and check:

  • The correct camera model is selected (especially important if multiple cameras are connected)
  • The camera status shows as connected, not "No camera found"
  • If the camera is listed as disconnected, unplug and re-plug the USB cable, then restart FMX
  • On Windows, open Device Manager to confirm the camera appears under "Imaging Devices" without a warning icon

After reconnecting, restart FMX before testing again — FMX initializes the camera connection at launch.

3. Diagnose a Black Preview (Flash or Lighting Issue)

If FMX takes the shot but the preview shows a completely black image, the camera is working correctly — the problem is that there's not enough light reaching the sensor. This almost always means the flash is not firing.

Quick ISO test to confirm:

  1. Go to Global Settings → Camera
  2. Set the ISO to 6400
  3. Take a test photo

If the image now appears (even if very grainy), the camera is functional and the issue is the flash or ambient lighting. If it's still black, proceed to step 4.

Flash checklist:

  • Flash sync cable is firmly connected at both ends (camera hot shoe and flash body)
  • The flash is powered on and the pilot/ready light is lit
  • Try the flash's manual test-fire button to confirm it fires at all
  • In FMX camera settings, check the Flash trigger mode — set to "Sync cable" if you're using a wired strobe

4. Restart the Camera Connection

If the above steps didn't resolve it:

  1. Close FMX completely
  2. Unplug the camera USB cable and wait 10 seconds
  3. Reconnect the camera and wait for Windows to recognize it
  4. Reopen FMX and check Global Settings → Camera before starting an event

On some systems, a Windows update can reassign the camera to a different USB driver. If the problem started after a system update, check Device Manager for a yellow warning icon on the camera device.

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