Documentation
Choosing a target image
The target image is the picture the phone recognises and locks onto. It is the single biggest factor in how steady and reliable your AR feels - a great target tracks instantly and sits rock-still; a weak one wobbles and drifts no matter what.
What makes a good target
- Lots of fine detail - busy photos, illustrations and textured artwork give the phone many points to lock onto. Plain logos, solid colours and simple icons do not.
- High contrast - strong differences between light and dark help. Faint, washed-out or low-contrast images are hard to track.
- Non-repetitive - avoid regular patterns (grids, stripes, repeated tiles). The phone can't tell one repeat from another, so the content jumps around.
- Asymmetric - an image that looks different when rotated helps the phone work out which way up it is.
- Matte, not glossy - shiny or laminated prints catch reflections and glare that hide the detail. Print on matte paper if you can.
✓ Strong target
Lots of detail, high contrast, matte.
✕ Weak target
Plain, glossy, little detail - it will wobble.
In the real world
- Print it large and flat - a bigger target fills more of the camera and tracks better. Keep it flat (no curling or creases).
- Light it evenly - good, even lighting with no glare or harsh shadows. Dim or patchy light makes the image blurry to the camera.
- Fill the frame - encourage viewers to hold the phone so the target fills a good part of the screen, and to keep it reasonably still.
Quick test
If you can clearly make out lots of fine detail in the image from where the phone will be held, it will probably track well. If it looks plain, shiny or blurry, choose a better image.
Note
AR Works also smooths tracking automatically once the target is found, but smoothing can only do so much - a strong target does the heavy lifting. If your content still wobbles, the target is almost always the thing to improve first. See Troubleshooting.