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The Zelda Tears of the Kingdom camera ability for your Purah Pad is a semi-optional ability that you can unlock either very early on, or much, much later depending on the choices in TOTK that you make. Specifically, the camera is tied to a major side quest, but it's one that you can delay well into the game: specifically, it's a part of Robbie and Josha's questline called "Camera Work in the Depths" that will take you, unsurprisingly, to the Depths to work with a camera.
Fine, nobody said that titling was a strong point in this game. Still, it's a good quest to take early on, as the Camera can be very useful as a means to catalogue certain objects, locate others, and even be essential to certain side quests! With that in mind, get ready to head below and bring all the Brightbloom Seeds you can find, as I explain how to unlock the camera in The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom, as well as how you use the camera and view pictures once you have it.
How to get the Camera in Zelda Tears of the Kingdom
You'll get your Tears of the Kingdom camera when Robbie sets up your Purah Pad after talking to him and Josha at Lookout Landing. He'll ask you to come on an expedition with him to the Depths to investigate some statues, and since scientist Josha would like photographic evidence of these man-made structures, Robbie is all too eager to show you how to use your camera.
This mission is not a huge undertaking, unlike restoring your master sword in Zelda Tears of the Kingdom or finding lost memory fragments using Tears of the Kingdom geoglyphs. But it just as vital in the grand scheme of things.
After chatting to Robbie at Lookout Landing and agreeing to meet him in the Depths, you'll need to make your way to the Gloom chasm in front of the Jiosin Shrine, south of Hyrule Castle. Jump in, and when you reach the bottom start shooting Brightbloom seeds into the ground ahead of you to make your way to the first Lightroot. These work similarly to Skyview Towers and activating them will illuminate a section of the Depths, and make it show up on your map.
Once you've activated the two Lightroots as you follow Robbie's trail, you'll find him by a statue, waiting for you to take a picture of it. Once this mission is done you'll be able to snap photos of anything you see in Zelda Tears of the Kingdom. All your pictures will then be saved in the Album on your Purah Pad menu. Just hit the – button to check them out.
How to use the camera
Once unlocked, using the Purah Pad camera is easy. Simply open your Zelda Tears of the Kingdom abilities menu by tapping L, then use the right joystick to select the Camera icon in the top-right. This will open the camera, so now you can turn to face whatever it is you wish to photograph using the two joysticks and hit the A button to snap a picture when you're ready.
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