Take Photo: Overview

The Take Photo step is the core capture action in your FMX workflow.
It activates the camera, captures a still photo, and makes that photo available to the rest of the experience: for AI effects, layouts, previews, printing, and sharing.
Whenever your workflow needs a guest photo, it passes through a Take Photo step.

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What Is the Take Photo Step?

Take Photo is a feature step in the Workflow Builder that performs a single photo capture and hands that image to all later steps in the flow.

From the workflow point of view, Take Photo:

• Loads the camera when the workflow reaches this step

• Captures one still photo from the guest

• Saves the photo into the current session so later steps can use it (AI, layouts, print, share)

• Works with the camera configured for the event: a built-in iPad camera, a Windows webcam, or a supported Canon, Nikon, Sony, or GoPro camera

From the guest’s point of view:

• The system counts down or indicates that a photo is about to be taken

• A photo is captured, and the booth immediately moves on to the next step, such as Preview, AI, or Print

Take Photo itself is focused on capture only: timing, countdowns, and extra animations are usually handled by the steps around it.

FMX for Windows 2.0.53 and later also correctly honor a camera override assigned to the Take Photo step. When no override is assigned, the step uses the camera selected in Global Settings → Camera. Test every branch that selects a different camera before the event.

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When Should You Use Take Photo?

Use a Take Photo step any time your workflow needs to capture a real photo and make it available to other features.

Typical reasons:

• To send a photo into an AI effect (headshot, cartoon, face swap, background removal, and more)

• To fill layouts such as strips, collages, and single-photo prints

• To provide still images used later in videos or GIFs created from photos

• To build a classic photo booth flow with a preview and print at the end

You can use Take Photo once for a simple single-photo experience, or several times in a row for multi-pose flows.

Canon operators can also let a guest or photographer press the camera's physical shutter. The shutter itself creates the photo, so a Take Photo step is not required and is not recommended on that capture path. Use a Raw Photo Preview to wait for and display the physical-shutter image. See How to Use the Canon Camera Shutter in FMX for Windows.

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How Take Photo Fits in the Workflow

In the Workflow Builder, Take Photo is added and connected like any other step:

• Select Take Photo in the Steps Library

• Place it where the capture should happen in the guest journey

• Connect it to the steps that come before (for example, Live View, Games, or Selection Screen) and after (for example, AI, Preview, Print Copies)

When the workflow reaches Take Photo:

• FMX activates the configured camera and captures one image

• The system waits until the capture is complete

• The captured photo is stored for the session

• The workflow automatically continues to the next step you connected to

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Typical Use Cases (With Examples)

1. Simple Single-Photo Booth
   Purpose
   A fast, classic photo booth flow for most events.

   Example flow
   Welcome → Take Photo → Preview → Print

   The guest steps in, the booth takes one photo, shows it for approval, and prints it.

2. AI-Enhanced Photo Experience
   Purpose
   Capture a photo and send it straight into an AI effect.

   Example flow
   Selection Screen (choose AI style) → Live View → Take Photo → AI Effect → Preview → Email / Print

   Guests pick an AI style, see themselves in live view, the booth captures a photo, processes it with AI, and then shows the final result to review and share.

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Why "Take Photo" Is Useful For Your Workflows:

• Core capture step: Take Photo is the foundation for most photo-based experiences.

• Works with everything: AI effects, layouts, videos from photos, sharing, and printing all rely on the photos captured here.

• Flexible: you can place it once or repeat it several times, and combine it with Live View, Games, AI, and other steps for richer flows.

For clients and guests:

• Simple and intuitive: “Look at the camera, we’ll take your photo” is easy for anyone to understand.

• High-quality outputs: a single capture can be transformed into many different outputs: AI art, branded layouts, prints, GIFs, and more.

• Better overall experience: when Take Photo is placed in the right spot and combined with Preview, AI, layouts, and sharing, one simple capture step can power a complete, polished experience from start to finish.

Troubleshooting

• The wrong camera fires: Recheck the Take Photo node's camera override and the default camera in Global Settings → Camera, then sync the current workflow again.
• A physical Canon shutter does nothing: Confirm the camera is supported and connected, then use one of the documented Canon shutter workflow patterns.
• Test Mode does not capture from the Canon shutter: Physical shutter capture is not simulated in Workflow Builder Test Mode. Test on the Windows booth with the real camera.
• Repeated captures attach to the wrong step: Keep one reserved Take Photo action per intended capture and allow it to finish before the workflow reaches the next capture.
• Live View stays locked: Pair every Live View Start with a Live View Stop and check that no other camera application is open.