Take a photo directly

You don’t have to open your camera app first, take a photo and then hunt for it. With Take Photo you launch your camera straight from the upload dialog, and the finished picture lands right in your upload preview.

One thing up front: Take Photo is not a camera built into PhotoGala. The button opens your device’s native camera (on a phone) or the file picker (on a computer). Capturing, confirming and discarding a blurry shot therefore happen in your device’s system camera – not inside PhotoGala. That’s why we cover phone and computer separately below.

How to reach Take Photo

The button lives in the upload dialog you open from the gallery.

1. Open the gallery and tap the Upload button (plus icon) in the gallery bar.

   Phone

   

   Computer

   

   The Upload button in the gallery bar opens the dialog.

2. In the source picker you’ll see two buttons side by side: Upload Images and Take Photo. Tap Take Photo (camera icon).

   Phone

   

   Computer

   

   Two sources to choose from: Upload Images or Take Photo.

   Phone

   

   Computer

   

   Take Photo opens your device camera.

Tip

If exactly one photo task is active as a filter, the dialog opens directly on that task – the Take Photo button is there too, and your photo is assigned to that task right away. More on this under Challenges & tasks.

On a phone or tablet

This is the real use case. Take Photo opens your device’s system camera.

1. Open the gallery and tap Upload → Take Photo.

2. The first time, your operating system or camera app may ask for camera permission. Tap Allow. This is a permission for your device’s camera app, not the classic website camera prompt – you won’t see that one on this path.

3. Take the photo in your system camera. The rear camera is preselected. Switch to the front/selfie camera using the toggle inside the camera app itself.

4. Confirm the photo in the camera app (checkmark/OK) – or discard it (X) and reshoot if it’s blurry. This retake step belongs to your device’s camera app.

5. After you confirm, PhotoGala jumps automatically to the photo preview. There you can add a description, pick an album, take more photos or delete the shot.

6. Tap Upload. Progress is shown, and then your photo appears in the gallery.

Note

Some phones or browsers handle the camera call differently: instead of the camera, your photo library may open. If so, pick your camera or photo app in that dialog, or take the photo with your normal camera app first and add it via Upload Images.

On a computer or laptop

On desktop there’s no viewfinder. Most browsers ignore the camera call there, so Take Photo opens the same file picker as Upload Images.

• On a computer, just choose Upload Images. Guide: Uploading photos.
• If you want a genuine webcam shot, take it with an external camera or photo app and then upload the file via Upload Images.

Take more photos or assign to a task

Take Photo appears in three places – all three open the same camera:

1. In the source picker (step 1) – the normal way for a spontaneous photo, right next to Upload Images.

2. In the task picker (step 2) – when you want to complete a photo task. Your camera shot is then assigned to that task.

   Phone

   

   Computer

   

   Shoot from within a task to complete it.

3. In the photo preview (step 3) – if you already have photos in your upload and want to snap another, tap the plus button. A small menu appears with Upload Images and Take Photo. That way you add another photo without leaving the upload.

Note

If you take several photos and one is a duplicate by accident, PhotoGala detects it and skips the copy (notice “Duplicate files detected”).

Retake and delete

PhotoGala has no dedicated “retake” screen – retaking works in two ways:

• Before confirming – discard and reshoot right in your device’s system camera. That’s normal camera operation.
• After confirming – in the photo preview (step 3), delete the shot with the trash button, then take a new one via the plus button → Take Photo. That’s the in-app “retake”.

Photo or video?

• Take Photo accepts photos and motion pictures (Live/Motion photos, animated GIFs). This is intentionally broad so the camera dialog opens cleanly on mobile.
• You can only capture video here if the host’s plan allows videos. If it doesn’t, only a photo is possible.
• Storage, photo and participant limits apply at the upload step. Details under Uploading photos.

Caution

Don’t see a Take Photo button? It’s not because of a dedicated camera switch – there isn’t one. The button always appears when you’re allowed to upload. It’s missing when:

• Guest uploads are disabled (the host has blocked guest uploads) → “No upload permission”,
• the event has ended or expired → “Event has ended” or “Event has expired”,
• you’ve been banned from uploading → “Upload banned”; in that case reach out to a moderator.

Hosts enable guest uploads in the privacy/moderation settings. You reach the admin area through the profile menu (top right).

Tip

If something’s off:

• On a computer, only the file picker opens, no camera – that’s normal, the camera call is ignored on desktop. Take the photo with a camera app and use Upload Images.
• On a phone, the photo library opens instead of the camera – pick your camera app in that dialog, or shoot first and use Upload Images.
• Camera permission denied by accident – re-enable it in your browser’s or camera app’s system settings (device level, not just website permission).
• Nothing happens after the photo, or a file won’t add – wait a moment; the app prepares the files automatically (overlay “Preparing files…”). If you get an error, take the photo again.
• Photo is blurry – delete it in the photo preview via the trash button and reshoot.

Related topics

• Uploading photos – the main alternative and the way to go on a computer.
• Challenges & tasks – take a photo directly for a task.