Frequently Asked Questions

There are several ways to add your own reference photos. For a complete guide, watch our tutorial: Reference Camera Basics: How to Upload Your Reference Photos.

Using a reference overlay helps you match composition, framing, and posing. Here are a few video guides for different use cases:

• For Posing (Women): Level Up Your Photos: How Women Can Nail the Perfect Pose
• For Posing (Men): Level Up Your Photos: A Man's Guide to Nailing the Perfect Pose
• For Product/Craft Photography: Curate Your Unique Style: A Guide to Showcasing Crafts

Yes, absolutely. You can use an official passport photo template as your reference to ensure your photo meets the strict size and positioning requirements. This is a great way to save time and money. Watch our tutorial here: How to Take a Perfect USA Passport Photo at Home.

When uploading a reference, you have a choice:

• Offline Access (Toggled ON): The photo is downloaded and stored securely in the app's private directory on your phone. It will always be available, even without an internet connection.
• Offline Access (Toggled OFF): Only the web address (URL) of the image is saved. If the original image is deleted from its website, your reference will no longer work.

All photos you capture with Reference Camera are saved directly to your device's local storage. You can find them in a folder named "ReferenceCamera" inside your main "Pictures" directory. The app does not upload or store your photos anywhere else.

None at all. We are committed to your privacy. The app collects no personal data, analytics, or tracking information. For full details, please read our Privacy Policy.

Yes, this is the expected behavior for all Android apps. Clearing an app's storage or data from your phone's settings will delete all locally stored files associated with it, including your reference images and any photos you've taken. We highly recommend setting up an automatic cloud backup for your photos.

Using Google Photos is an easy way to back up your pictures. To include the photos you take with Reference Camera:

1. Open the Google Photos app.
2. Tap on your profile picture or initial in the top-right corner, then select "Photos settings."
3. Go to "Back up" → "Back up device folders."
4. Find the "ReferenceCamera" folder in the list and toggle it on.

Once enabled, any new photos you take with the app will be automatically backed up to your Google Photos account.

The easiest way is to take a screenshot of the exact moment in the video you want to capture. Then, simply upload that screenshot from your phone's gallery into Reference Camera. For a detailed guide on uploading, see our tutorial: How to Upload Your Reference Photos.

For bulk uploads, the best method is to use a public Google Sheet. This allows you to manage hundreds of references easily. The sheet only needs two columns: `url` and `instructions`. Make sure to set the sharing permission to "Anyone with the link."

For a step-by-step guide, please watch the "Method 3" section of our upload tutorial video.

They serve different purposes:

• Instructions are short, direct commands for the photographer. They are visible as an overlay on the camera screen to provide real-time guidance (e.g., "Use 3x zoom," "Turn on grid," "Focus on the eyes").
• Notes are for your own private reference. They are not displayed on the camera screen and are used for logging longer thoughts, details, or reminders about a particular reference photo.