photo_manager
English | 中文说明 (
A Flutter plugin that provides assets abstraction management APIs without UI integration, you can get assets (image/video/audio) on Android, iOS and macOS.
Projects using this plugin
| name | pub | github |
|---|---|---|
| wechat_assets_picker |  |
 |
| wechat_camera_picker |  |
 |
Articles about this plugin
Migration guide
For versions upgrade across major versions, see the migration guide for detailed info.
- photo_manager
- Projects using this plugin
- Articles about this plugin
- Migration guide
- Common issues
- Prepare for use
- Usage
- Cache mechanism
- Native extra configs
Common issues
Please search common issues in GitHub issues for build errors, runtime exceptions, etc.
Prepare for use
Add the plugin reference to pubspec.yaml
Two ways to add the plugin to your pubspec:
- (Recommend) Run
flutter pub add photo_manager. - Add the plugin reference in your
pubspec.yaml'sdependenciessection:
dependencies:
photo_manager: $latest_versionThe latest stable version is:
Import in your projects
import 'package:photo_manager/photo_manager.dart';Configure native platforms
Minimum platform versions: Android 16, iOS 9.0, macOS 10.15.
- Android: Android config preparation.
- iOS: iOS config preparation.
- macOS: Pretty much the same with iOS.
Android config preparation
Kotlin, Gradle, AGP
Starting from 1.2.7, We ship this plugin with
Kotlin 1.5.21 and Android Gradle Plugin 4.1.0.
If your projects use a lower version of Kotlin/Gradle/AGP,
please upgrade them to a newer version.
More specifically:
- Upgrade your Gradle version (
gradle-wrapper.properties) to7.5.1or the latest version. - Upgrade your Kotlin version (
ext.kotlin_version) to1.5.30or the latest version. - Upgrade your AGP version (
com.android.tools.build:gradle) to7.2.2or the latest version.
Android 10+ (Q, 29)
If you're not compiling or targeting with 29 and above, you can skip this section.
On Android 10, Scoped Storage was introduced, which causes the origin resource file not directly inaccessible through it file path.
If your compileSdkVersion or targetSdkVersion is 29, you can consider adding android:requestLegacyExternalStorage="true"to yourAndroidManifest.xml` in order to obtain resources:
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
package="com.fluttercandies.photo_manager_example">
<application
android:label="photo_manager_example"
android:icon="@mipmap/ic_launcher"
android:requestLegacyExternalStorage="true">
</application>
</manifest>Note: Apps that are using the flag will be rejected from the Google Play.
This is not a requirement, the plugin can still work with caching files.
But you'll need to control caches on your own, the best practice is to clear file caches
each time when you start your app by calling PhotoManager.clearFileCache().
Glide
The plugin use Glide to create thumbnail bytes for Android.
If you found some warning logs with Glide appearing,
it means the main project needs an implementation of AppGlideModule.
See Generated API for the implementation.
iOS config preparation
Define the NSPhotoLibraryUsageDescription
key-value in the ios/Runner/Info.plist:
<key>NSPhotoLibraryUsageDescription</key>
<string>In order to access your photo library</string>If you want to grant only write-access to the photo library on iOS 11 and above,
define the NSPhotoLibraryAddUsageDescription
key-value in the ios/Runner/Info.plist.
It's pretty much the same as the NSPhotoLibraryUsageDescription.
Usage
Request for permission
Most of the APIs can only use with granted permission.
final PermissionState _ps = await PhotoManager.requestPermissionExtend();
if (_ps.isAuth) {
// Granted.
} else {
// Limited(iOS) or Rejected, use `==` for more precise judgements.
// You can call `PhotoManager.openSetting()` to open settings for further steps.
}But if you're pretty sure your callers will be only called after the permission is granted, you can ignore permission checks:
PhotoManager.setIgnorePermissionCheck(true);Limited entities access on iOS
With iOS 14 released, Apple brought a "Limited Photos Library" to iOS.
So use the PhotoManager.requestPermissionExtend() to request permissions.
The method will return PermissionState.
See PHAuthorizationStatus for more detail.
To reselect accessible entites for the app,
use PhotoManager.presentLimited() to call the modal of
accessible entities' management.
This method only available for iOS 14+ and when the permission state
is limited (PermissionState.limited),
other platform won't make a valid call.
Get albums/folders (AssetPathEntity)
Albums or folders are abstracted as the AssetPathEntity class.
It represents a bucket in the MediaStore on Android,
and the PHAssetCollection object on iOS/macOS.
To get all of them:
final List<AssetPathEntity> paths = await PhotoManager.getAssetPathList();See getAssetPathList for more detail.
Get assets (AssetEntity)
Assets (images/videos/audios) are abstracted as the AssetEntity class.
It represents a series of fields with MediaStore on Android,
and the PHAsset object on iOS/macOS.
PMFilter
Some methods of PhotoManager and AssetPathEntity have a filterOption.
- PhotoManager
- getAssetPathList (The filter param passed in by this method will be passed into the AssetPathEntity of the result)
- getAssetCount
- getAssetListRange
- getAssetListPaged
- AssetPathEntity
- constructor (Method not recommended for users)
- fromId
- obtainPathFromProperties (Method not recommended for users)
The PMFilter have two implementations:
PMFilterOptionGroup
Before 2.6.0, the only way to implement it.
final FilterOptionGroup filterOption = FilterOptionGroup(
imageOption: FilterOption(
sizeConstraint: SizeConstraint(
maxWidth: 10000,
maxHeight: 10000,
minWidth: 100,
minHeight: 100,
ignoreSize: false,
),
),
videoOption: FilterOption(
durationConstraint: DurationConstraint(
min: Duration(seconds: 1),
max: Duration(seconds: 30),
allowNullable: false,
),
),
createTimeCondition: DateTimeCondition(
min: DateTime(2020, 1, 1),
max: DateTime(2020, 12, 31),
),
orders: [
OrderOption(
type: OrderOptionType.createDate,
asc: false,
),
],
/// other options
);CustomFilter
This is an experimental feature, please submit an issue if you have any problems.
CustomFilter was added in the 2.6.0 version of the plugin,
which provide more flexible filtering conditions against host platforms.
It is closer to the native way of use. You can customize where conditions and order conditions. It is up to you to decide which fields to use for filtering and sorting
Like sql construct a sql statement.
The column name of iOS or android is different, so you need to use the CustomColumns.base、CustomColumns.android or CustomColumns.darwin to get the column name.
PMFilter createFilter() {
final CustomFilter filterOption = CustomFilter.sql(
where: '${CustomColumns.base.width} > 100 AND ${CustomColumns.base.height} > 200',
orderBy: [OrderByItem.desc(CustomColumns.base.createDate)],
);
return filterOption;
}Advanced filter
class AdvancedCustomFilter extends CustomFilter
The AdvancedCustomFilter is a subclass of CustomFilter, The have builder methods to help make a filter.
PMFilter createFilter() {
final group = WhereConditionGroup()
.and(
ColumnWhereCondition(
column: CustomColumns.base.width,
value: '100',
operator: '>',
),
)
.or(
ColumnWhereCondition(
column: CustomColumns.base.height,
value: '200',
operator: '>',
),
);
final filter = AdvancedCustomFilter()
.addWhereCondition(group)
.addOrderBy(column: CustomColumns.base.createDate, isAsc: false);
return filter;
}
Main class of custom filter
CustomFilter: The base class of custom filter.OrderByItem: The class of order by item.SqlCustomFilter: The subclass ofCustomFilter, It is used to make a like sql filter.AdvancedCustomFilter: The subclass ofCustomFilter, It is used to make a advanced filter.WhereConditionItem: The class of where condition item.TextWhereCondition: The class of where condition. The text will not be checked.WhereConditionGroup: The class of where condition group. The class is used to make a group of where condition.ColumnWhereCondition: The class of where condition. The column will be checked.DateColumnWhereCondition: The class of where condition. Because dates have different conversion methods on iOS/macOS, this implementation smoothes the platform differences
CustomColumns: This class contains fields for different platforms.base: The common fields are included here, but please note that the "id" field is invalid in iOS and may even cause errors. It is only valid on Android.android: The columns of android.darwin: The columns of iOS/macOS.
PS: The CustomColumns should be noted that iOS uses the Photos API, while Android uses ContentProvider, which is closer to SQLite. Therefore, even though they are called "columns," these fields are PHAsset fields on iOS/macOS and MediaStoreColumns fields on Android.
From AssetPathEntity
You can use the pagination method:
final List<AssetEntity> entities = await path.getAssetListPaged(page: 0, size: 80);Or use the range method:
final List<AssetEntity> entities = await path.getAssetListRange(start: 0, end: 80);From PhotoManager (Since 2.6.0)
First, You need get count of assets:
final int count = await PhotoManager.getAssetCount();Then, you can use the pagination method:
final List<AssetEntity> entities = await PhotoManager.getAssetListPaged(page: 0, pageCount: 80);Or use the range method:
final List<AssetEntity> entities = await PhotoManager.getAssetListRange(start: 0, end: 80);Note:
The page, start is base 0.
From ID
The ID concept represents:
- The ID field of the
MediaStoreon Android. - The
localIdentifierfield of thePHAsseton iOS.
You can store the ID if you want to implement features
that's related to persistent selections.
Use AssetEntity.fromId to retrieve the entity
once you persist an ID.
final AssetEntity? asset = await AssetEntity.fromId(id);Be aware that the created asset might have limited access or got deleted in anytime, so the result might be null.
From raw data
You can create your own entity from raw data, such as downloaded images, recorded videos, etc. The created entity will show as a corresponding resource on your device's gallery app.
final Uint8List rawData = yourRawData;
// Save an image to an entity from `Uint8List`.
final AssetEntity? entity = await PhotoManager.editor.saveImage(
rawData,
title: 'write_your_own_title.jpg', // Affects EXIF reading.
);
// Save an existed image to an entity from it's path.
final AssetEntity? imageEntityWithPath = await PhotoManager.editor.saveImageWithPath(
path, // Use the absolute path of your source file, it's more like a copy method.
title: 'same_as_above.jpg',
);
// Save a video entity from `File`.
final File videoFile = File('path/to/your/video.mp4');
final AssetEntity? videoEntity = await PhotoManager.editor.saveVideo(
videoFile, // You can check whether the file is exist for better test coverage.
title: 'write_your_own_title.mp4',
);
// [iOS only] Save a live photo from image and video `File`.
// This only works when both image and video file were part of same live photo.
final File imageFile = File('path/to/your/livephoto.heic');
final File videoFile = File('path/to/your/livevideo.mp4');
final AssetEntity? entity = await PhotoManager.editor.darwin.saveLivePhoto(
imageFile: imageFile,
videoFile: videoFile,
title: 'write_your_own_title.heic',
);Be aware that the created asset might have limited access or got deleted in anytime, so the result might be null.
From iCloud
Resources might be saved only on iCloud to save disk space.
When retrieving file from iCloud, the speed is depend on the network condition,
which might be very slow that makes users feel anxious.
To provide a responsive user interface, you can use PMProgressHandler
to retrieve the progress when load a file.
The preferred implementation would be the LocallyAvailableBuilder
in the wechat_asset_picker package, which provides a progress indicator
when the file is downloading.
Display assets
The plugin provided the AssetEntityImage widget and
the AssetEntityImageProvider to display assets:
final Widget image = AssetEntityImage(
yourAssetEntity,
isOriginal: false, // Defaults to `true`.
thumbnailSize: const ThumbnailSize.square(200), // Preferred value.
thumbnailFormat: ThumbnailFormat.jpeg, // Defaults to `jpeg`.
);
final Widget imageFromProvider = Image(
image: AssetEntityImageProvider(
yourAssetEntity,
isOriginal: false,
thumbnailSize: const ThumbnailSize.square(200),
thumbnailFormat: ThumbnailFormat.jpeg,
),
);Obtain "Live Photos"
This plugin supports obtain live photos and filtering them:
Filtering only "Live Photos"
This is supported when filtering only image.
final List<AssetPathEntity> paths = await PhotoManager.getAssetPathList(
type: RequestType.image,
filterOption: FilterOptionGroup(onlyLivePhotos: true),
);Obtain the video from "Live Photos"
final AssetEntity entity = livePhotoEntity;
final String? mediaUrl = await entity.getMediaUrl();
final File? imageFile = await entity.file;
final File? videoFile = await entity.fileWithSubtype;
final File? originImageFile = await entity.originFile;
final File? originVideoFile = await entity.originFileWithSubtype;Limitations
Android 10 media location permission
Due to the privacy policy issues on Android 10, it is necessary to grant the location permission to obtain the original data with the location info and the EXIF metadata.
If you want to use the location permission,
add the ACCESS_MEDIA_LOCATION permission to your manifest.
Usage of the original data
The originFile and originBytes getter
will return the original data of an entity.
However, there are some cases that the original data is invalid in Flutter.
Here are some common cases:
- HEIC files are not fully supported across platforms. We suggest you to upload the JPEG file (99% quality compressed thumbnail) in order to keep a consistent behavior between multiple platforms. See flutter/flutter#20522 for more detail.
- Videos will only be obtained in the original format, not the exported/composited format, which might cause some behavior difference when playing videos.
Long retrieving duration with file on iOS
There are several I/O methods in this library targeting AssetEntity,
typically they are:
- All methods named with
file. AssetEntity.originBytes.
File retrieving and caches are limited by the sandbox mechanism on iOS.
An existing PHAsset doesn't mean the file located on the device.
In generally, a PHAsset will have three status:
isLocallyAvailableequalstrue, also cached: Available for obtain.isLocallyAvailableequalstrue, but not cached: When you call I/O methods, the resource will first cached into the sandbox, then available for obtain.isLocallyAvailableequalsfalse: Typically this means the asset exists, but it's saved only on iCloud, or some videos that not exported yet. In this case, the best practise is to use thePMProgressHandlerto provide a responsive user interface.
Entities change notify
Plugin will post entities change events from native,
but they will include different contents.
See the logs folder for more recorded logs.
To register a callback for these events, use
[PhotoManager.addChangeCallback] to add a callback,
and use [PhotoManager.removeChangeCallback] to remove the callback,
just like addListener and removeListener methods.
After you added/removed callbacks, you can call
[PhotoManager.startChangeNotify] method to enable to notify,
and [PhotoManager.stopChangeNotify] method to stop notify.
import 'package:flutter/services.dart';
void changeNotify(MethodCall call) {
// Your custom callback.
}
/// Register your callback.
PhotoManager.addChangeCallback(changeNotify);
/// Enable change notify.
PhotoManager.startChangeNotify();
/// Remove your callback.
PhotoManager.removeChangeCallback(changeNotify);
/// Disable change notify.
PhotoManager.stopChangeNotify();Cache mechanism
Cache on Android
Because Android 10 restricts the ability to access the resource path directly,
image caches will be generated during I/O processes.
More specifically, when the file, originFile and any other I/O getters are called,
the plugin will save a file in the cache folder for further use.
Fortunately, on Android 11 and above, the resource path can be obtained directly again,
but you can still use requestLegacyExternalStorage
to access files in the storage without caching them.
See Android 10+ (Q, 29) for how to add the attribute.
Cache on iOS
iOS does not directly provide APIs to access the original files of the album.
So a cached file will be generated locally
into the container of the current application
when you called file, originFile and any other I/O getters.
If occupied disk spaces are sensitive in your use case, you can delete it after your usage has done (iOS only).
import 'dart:io';
Future<void> useEntity(AssetEntity entity) async {
File? file;
try {
file = await entity.file;
handleFile(file!); // Custom method to handle the obtained file.
} finally {
if (Platform.isIOS) {
file?.deleteSync(); // Delete it once the process has done.
}
}
}Clear caches
You can use the PhotoManager.clearFileCache() method
to clear all caches that generated by the plugin.
Here are caches generation on different platforms,
types and resolutions.
| Platform | Thumbnail | File / Origin File |
|---|---|---|
| Android | Yes | No |
| iOS | No | Yes |
Native extra configs
Android extra configs
Glide issues
If your found any conflicting issues against Glide,
then you'll need to edit the android/build.gradle file:
rootProject.allprojects {
subprojects {
project.configurations.all {
resolutionStrategy.eachDependency { details ->
if (details.requested.group == 'com.github.bumptech.glide'
&& details.requested.name.contains('glide')) {
details.useVersion '4.15.1'
}
}
}
}
}See ProGuard for Glide if you want to know more about using ProGuard and Glide together.
Android 13 (Api 33) extra configs
When targeting Android 13 (API level 33), the following extra configs needs to be added to the manifest:
<manifest>
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.READ_MEDIA_IMAGES" /> <!-- If you want to read images-->
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.READ_MEDIA_VIDEO" /> <!-- If you want to read videos-->
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.READ_MEDIA_AUDIO" /> <!-- If you want to read audio-->
</manifest>iOS extra configs
Localized system albums name
By default, iOS will retrieve system album names only in English no matter what language has been set to devices. To change the default language, see the following steps:
-
Open your iOS project (Runner.xcworkspace) using Xcode.
-
Select the project "Runner" and in the localizations table, click on the + icon.
-
Select the adequate language(s) you want to retrieve localized strings.
-
Validate the popup screen without any modification.
-
Rebuild your flutter project.
Now system albums label should display accordingly.
Experimental features
Warning: Features here aren't guaranteed to be fully usable since they involved with data modification. They can be modified/removed in any time, without following a proper version semantic.
Some APIs will make irreversible modification/deletion to data. Please be careful and implement your own test mechanism when using them.
Preload thumbnails
You can preload thumbnails for entities with specified thumbnail options
using PhotoCachingManager.requestCacheAssets
or PhotoCachingManager.requestCacheAssetsWithIds.
PhotoCachingManager().requestCacheAssets(assets: assets, option: option);And you can stop in anytime by calling
PhotoCachingManager().cancelCacheRequest().
Usually, when we're previewing assets, thumbnails will be use. But sometimes we want to preload assets to make them display faster.
The PhotoCachingManager uses the PHCachingImageManager on iOS,
and Glide's file cache on Android.
Delete entities
This method will delete the asset completely from your device. Use it with extra cautious.
// Deleted IDs will returned, if it fails, the result will be an empty list.
final List<String> result = await PhotoManager.editor.deleteWithIds(
<String>[entity.id],
);After the deletion, you can call the refreshPathProperties method
to refresh the corresponding AssetPathEntity in order to get latest fields.
Copy an entity
You can use copyAssetToPath method to "Copy" an entity
from its current position to the targeting AssetPathEntity:
// Make sure your path entity is accessible.
final AssetPathEntity anotherPathEntity = anotherAccessiblePath;
final AssetEntity entity = yourEntity;
final AssetEntity? newEntity = await PhotoManager.editor.copyAssetToPath(
asset: entity,
pathEntity: anotherPathEntity,
); // The result could be null when the path is not accessible.The "Copy" means differently here on Android and iOS:
- For Android, it inserts a copy of the source entity:
- On platforms <=28, the method will copy most of the origin info.
- On platforms >=29, some fields cannot be modified during the insertion, e.g. MediaColumns.RELATIVE_PATH.
- For iOS, it makes a shortcut thing rather than create a new physical entity.
- Some albums are smart albums, their content is automatically managed by the system and cannot insert entities manually.
(For Android 30+, this feature is blocked by system limitations currently.)
Features for Android only
Move an entity to another album
// Make sure your path entity is accessible.
final AssetPathEntity pathEntity = accessiblePath;
final AssetEntity entity = yourEntity;
await PhotoManager.editor.android.moveAssetToAnother(
entity: entity,
target: pathEntity,
);(For Android 30+, this feature is blocked by system limitations currently.)
Remove all non-exist entities
This will remove all items (records) that's not existed locally.
A record in Android MediaStore could have the corresponding file deleted.
Those abnormal behaviors usually caused by operations from
file manager, helper tools or adb tool.
This operation is resource-consuming,
Please use the await keyword to call the cleaning process
before you call another one.
await PhotoManager.editor.android.removeAllNoExistsAsset();Some operating systems will prompt confirmation dialogs for each entities' deletion, we have no way to avoid them. Make sure your customers accept repeatedly confirmations.
Features for iOS or macOS
Create a folder
PhotoManager.editor.darwin.createFolder(
name,
parent: parent, // Null, the root path or accessible folders.
);Create an album
PhotoManager.editor.darwin.createAlbum(
name,
parent: parent, // Null, the root path or accessible folders.
);Remove the entity entry from the album
Remove the entry of the asset from the specific album. The asset won't be deleted from the device, only removed from the album.
// Make sure your path entity is accessible.
final AssetPathEntity pathEntity = accessiblePath;
final AssetEntity entity = yourEntity;
final List<AssetEntity> entities = <AssetEntity>[yourEntity, anotherEntity];
// Remove single asset from the album.
// It'll call the list method as the implementation.
await PhotoManager.editor.darwin.removeInAlbum(
yourEntity,
accessiblePath,
);
// Remove assets from the album in batches.
await PhotoManager.editor.darwin.removeAssetsInAlbum(
entities,
accessiblePath,
);Delete a path entity
Smart albums can't be deleted.
PhotoManager.editor.darwin.deletePath();