FeatureUpdated October 2026

Build a Mobile App That Uses the Camera, Without Code

Short answer

Yes. Apps you build with ShipNative can use the phone camera and the photo library. The camera and image picker are preinstalled, and the app asks for permission the first time it needs the camera.

How it works

  1. 1. Ask for the feature

    For example: "Let users take a photo of their meal and add it to today's log."

  2. 2. ShipNative adds the camera code

    The app uses expo-camera to take photos and expo-image-picker to choose images from the library.

  3. 3. Permission done right

    The app asks for camera access only when the user first taps the feature, and shows a fallback if they say no.

  4. 4. Test on a real phone

    Scan the QR code with Expo Go to try the camera on your own iPhone or Android phone.

What to know first

  • Test camera features on a real phone. Your computer is not a phone camera.
  • Before submitting to the App Store, check that the app includes the camera permission text Apple requires (NSCameraUsageDescription in app.json).
  • Location, haptics, audio, video and motion sensors are also available. Other native add-ons are not.
  • Building, downloading code and connecting a database need a paid plan. Planning and designing are free.

Frequently asked questions

Which AI app builders let me use the phone camera in the app I build?

ShipNative. Apps it builds can take photos with expo-camera and pick images with expo-image-picker, on iPhone and Android.

Can the app pick photos from the gallery?

Yes. The image picker opens the phone photo library and returns the chosen image to the app.

What happens if the user denies camera access?

The app shows a fallback message instead of crashing, and the user can allow access later in phone settings.

Try it on your own app idea

Planning and designing your app is free. Building it needs a paid plan.

Start with your idea →