/photokit

name: photokit
description: "Implement, review, or improve photo picking, camera capture, and media handling in iOS apps using PhotoKit and AVFoundation. Use when working with PhotosPicker, PHPickerViewController, camera capture sessions (AVCaptureSession), photo library access, image loading and display, video recording, or media permissions. Also use when selecting photos from the library, taking pictures, recording video, processing images, or handling photo/camera privacy permissions in Swift apps."

PhotoKit

Modern patterns for photo picking, camera capture, image loading, and media permissions targeting iOS 26+ with Swift 6.3. Patterns are backward-compatible to iOS 16 unless noted. See [references/photokit-patterns.md](references/photokit-patterns.md) for complete picker recipes and [references/camera-capture.md](references/camera-capture.md) for AVCaptureSession patterns.

Contents

• [PhotosPicker (SwiftUI, iOS 16+)](#photospicker-swiftui-ios-16)
• [Privacy and Permissions](#privacy-and-permissions)
• [Camera Capture Basics](#camera-capture-basics)
• [Image Loading and Display](#image-loading-and-display)
• [Common Mistakes](#common-mistakes)
• [Review Checklist](#review-checklist)
• [References](#references)

PhotosPicker (SwiftUI, iOS 16+)

`PhotosPicker` is the native SwiftUI replacement for `UIImagePickerController`. It runs out-of-process, requires no photo library permission for browsing, and supports single or multi-selection with media type filtering.

Single Selection

import SwiftUI
import PhotosUI

struct SinglePhotoPicker: View {
    @State private var selectedItem: PhotosPickerItem?
    @State private var selectedImage: Image?

    var body: some View {
        VStack {
            if let selectedImage {
                selectedImage
                    .resizable()
                    .scaledToFit()
                    .frame(maxHeight: 300)
            }

            PhotosPicker("Select Photo", selection: $selectedItem, matching: .images)
        }
        .onChange(of: selectedItem) { _, newItem in
            Task {
                if let data = try? await newItem?.loadTransferable(type: Data.self),
                   let uiImage = UIImage(data: data) {
                    selectedImage = Image(uiImage: uiImage)
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

Multi-Selection

struct MultiPhotoPicker: View {
    @State private var selectedItems: [PhotosPickerItem] = []
    @State private var selectedImages: [Image] = []

    var body: some View {
        VStack {
            ScrollView(.horizontal) {
                HStack {
                    ForEach(selectedImages.indices, id: \.self) { index in
                        selectedImages[index]
                            .resizable()
                            .scaledToFill()
                            .frame(width: 100, height: 100)
                            .clipShape(.rect(cornerRadius: 8))
                    }
                }
            }

            PhotosPicker(
                "Select Photos",
                selection: $selectedItems,
                maxSelectionCount: 5,
                matching: .images
            )
        }
        .onChange(of: selectedItems) { _, newItems in
            Task {
                selectedImages = []
                for item in newItems {
                    if let data = try? await item.loadTransferable(type: Data.self),
                       let uiImage = UIImage(data: data) {
                        selectedImages.append(Image(uiImage: uiImage))
                    }
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

Media Type Filtering

Filter with `PHPickerFilter` composites to restrict selectable media:

// Images only
PhotosPicker(selection: $items, matching: .images)

// Videos only
PhotosPicker(selection: $items, matching: .videos)

// Live Photos only
PhotosPicker(selection: $items, matching: .livePhotos)

// Screenshots only
PhotosPicker(selection: $items, matching: .screenshots)

// Images and videos combined
PhotosPicker(selection: $items, matching: .any(of: [.images, .videos]))

// Images excluding screenshots
PhotosPicker(selection: $items, matching: .all(of: [.images, .not(.screenshots)]))

Loading Selected Items with Transferable

`PhotosPickerItem` loads content asynchronously via `loadTransferable(type:)`. Define a `Transferable` type for automatic decoding:

struct PickedImage: Transferable {
    let data: Data
    let image: Image

    static var transferRepresentation: some TransferRepresentation {
        DataRepresentation(importedContentType: .image) { data in
            guard let uiImage = UIImage(data: data) else {
                throw TransferError.importFailed
            }
            return PickedImage(data: data, image: Image(uiImage: uiImage))
        }
    }
}

enum TransferError: Error {
    case importFailed
}

// Usage
if let picked = try? await item.loadTransferable(type: PickedImage.self) {
    selectedImage = picked.image
}

Always load in a `Task` to avoid blocking the main thread. Handle `nil` returns and thrown errors -- the user may select a format that cannot be decoded.

Privacy and Permissions

Photo Library Access Levels

iOS provides two access levels for the photo library. The system automatically presents the limited-library picker when an app requests `.readWrite` access -- users choose which photos to share.

| Access Level | Description | Info.plist Key | |-------------|-------------|----------------| | Add-only | Write photos to the library without reading | `NSPhotoLibraryAddUsageDescription` | | Read-write | Full or limited read access plus write | `NSPhotoLibraryUsageDescription` |

`PhotosPicker` requires no permission to browse -- it runs out-of-process and only grants access to selected items. Request explicit permission only when you need to read the full library (e.g., a custom gallery) or save photos