An MCP server that provides AI assistants with the ability to access webcams and video sources through OpenCV for capturing still images.

Installation

From Source Code

git clone https://github.com/13rac1/videocapture-mcp.git
cd videocapture-mcp
pip install -e .

Running the Server

mcp dev videocapture_mcp.py

Installation via MCP CLI

mcp install videocapture_mcp.py

Configuration

Claude Desktop macOS/Linux

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "VideoCapture ": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "--with",
        "mcp[cli]",
        "--with",
        "numpy",
        "--with",
        "opencv-python",
        "mcp",
        "run",
        "/ABSOLUTE_PATH/videocapture_mcp.py"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop Windows

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "VideoCapture": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "--with",
        "mcp[cli]",
        "--with",
        "numpy",
        "--with",
        "opencv-python",
        "mcp",
        "run",
        "C:\ABSOLUTE_PATH\videocapture-mcp\videocapture_mcp.py"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Available Tools

Tool	Description
quick_capture	Quickly opens the camera, captures a single frame, and closes it
open_camera	Opens a connection to the camera
capture_frame	Captures a single frame from the specified video source
get_video_properties	Gets video source properties (width, height, fps, etc.)
set_video_property	Sets video source properties (brightness, contrast, resolution)
close_connection	Closes the video connection and releases resources
list_active_connections	List of all active video connections

Features

• Fast image capture: capture a single image from a webcam without managing connections
• Connection management: open, manage, and close camera connections
• Video properties: read and configure camera parameters such as brightness, contrast, and resolution
• Image processing: basic image transformations, such as horizontal flipping
• Multiple cameras: support for accessing different cameras by index
• Resource management: automatic cleanup of camera resources

Usage Examples

I'll take a photo using your webcam

I'll open a connection to your webcam so we can take multiple photos

Let me increase the brightness of the webcam feed

Take a photo or perform any webcam-related task

Notes

Requirements include Python 3.10+, OpenCV (opencv-python), MCP Python SDK, and optionally UV. The server provides still image capture only—video capture functionality is not available. On some systems, explicit permission may be required to access the camera.