SnapVerbo app icon SnapVerbo
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Capture text with the camera

The camera is the fastest way to grab text from the real world — menus, books, signs, labels, packaging.

Take a photo

  1. Open SnapVerbo. You’re on the Capture screen.
  2. Tap the camera icon in the bottom row (centre).
  3. Frame the text in the viewfinder. Hold the phone steady.
  4. Tap the shutter button.

Use the camera controls

While the viewfinder is open:

  • Zoom in: tap the zoom presets (e.g. 0.5×, 1×, 2×) or pinch with two fingers. Useful for small print like medicine labels and footnotes.
  • Turn on the torch: tap the torch icon (top of the screen). Helpful in dim lighting — restaurant corners, museums, evening menus.
  • Set focus and exposure: tap anywhere on the preview. A focus ring appears at the tapped point and exposure adjusts to that area.
  • Switch cameras (if your device has more than one): tap the camera-switch icon.

Retake or crop after the shot

After you take a photo, the Review screen opens. You have three choices:

  • Retake — Tap Retake at the bottom-left. The camera reopens.
  • Use the photo as-is — Tap Use Photo at the bottom-right. Text recognition runs on the full image.
  • Crop first — Tap the crop toggle in the AppBar (top-right) to turn cropping on. Drag the corners of the green rectangle to enclose just the part you want. The bottom-right button changes to Use Crop — tap it. Text recognition runs only on the cropped area, and the cropped image is what gets saved as context with your vocabulary.

Tips

  • Cropping is the fastest way to focus on one paragraph in a busy page (multiple columns, sidebars, photos).
  • The cropped image — not the full photo — is what gets saved with each vocabulary entry. Cleaner context.
  • Long-press any icon on the Capture screen to see what it does.