How to Connect a USB Camera to a Macbook Pro

By Jedadiah Casey

There are two different types of USB cameras: one type is designed to take still photographs, and the other is designed to provide a video image, such as with a webcam. Apple's Mac OS X operating system, present on all MacBook Pro computers by default, has the software necessary to work with either type of USB camera built into the operating system. You can connect the USB camera to the MacBook Pro and it is configured automatically.

Still Camera

Boot the MacBook Pro into Mac OS X.

Insert one end of the USB cable into the camera.

Insert the other end of the USB cable into an available USB port on the MacBook Pro.

Power on the still camera.

Double-click the icon on the desktop representing the camera's internal storage. This allows you to view the pictures stored on the camera.

USB Webcam

Boot the MacBook Pro into Mac OS X.

Insert the webcam's USB cable into an available USB port on the MacBook Pro.

Open a program to use the webcam with. For example, newer MacBook Pros have an application called "PhotoBooth" built into the operating system that works with USB webcams. Also, many messaging programs, such as Skype, have the ability to use USB webcams with their software.

×