WSAL10299 – RPi Camera (F)/en

Documentation notice: This technical documentation was independently rewritten from an archived supplier source. Check technical details and commands against the product version and manufacturer documentation before use.

Summary

The RPi Camera (F) is a 5 MP camera for Raspberry Pi with an OV5647 sensor, adjustable focus, and infrared night vision. It connects via the CSI port and can be controlled using rpicam, libcamera, or raspicam commands.

Related products at JW Tech

WSAL10299 – RPi Camera (F) for Raspberry Pi, OV5647, 5MP, Supports Infrared night vision, Adjustable Focus

Technical overview

Sensor: OV5647, 5 megapixels, supports infrared night vision.
Connects via the CSI port; Raspberry Pi 5 provides two CSI ports.
Cable orientation: metal side of the FPC cable faces the Ethernet port (Pi 5), HDMI port (other boards), or downward (Zero series).
Supported drivers: libcamera/Raspicam for OV5647 on all Raspberry Pi boards.
config.txt configuration: set camera_auto_detect=0 for non-official cameras; use dtoverlay=ov5647 for this model.
Dual-camera setup: assign cam0/cam1 by appending to the dtoverlay line.
Preview and capture with rpicam-hello, rpicam-jpeg, rpicam-still, rpicam-vid, rpicam-raw, and rpicam-detect.
Capture example: rpicam-jpeg -o test.jpg -t 2000 --width 640 --height 480.
Exposure control: fixed shutter speed and gain parameters are available.
Closest focusing distance after adjustment is approximately 1–2 cm.

Commands and examples – verify before use:

rpicam-hello
rpicam-hello -t 0
rpicam-jpeg -o test.jpg
rpicam-jpeg -o test.jpg -t 2000 --width 640 --height 480
sudo libcamera-hello -t 0
sudo libcamera-hello -t 0 --camera 0
sudo libcamera-hello -t 0 --camera 1
dtoverlay=ov5647
dtoverlay=imx219,cam0
dtoverlay=ov5647,cam1
sudo nano /boot/config.txt
sudo nano /boot/firmware/config.txt

Notes and version constraints

Version sensitivity: Commands differ by OS (Bullseye vs. Bookworm); on older systems, Glamor and the correct display driver may need enabling.
Using IMX290 on Raspberry Pi 5 requires downloading and copying an additional JSON file from an external source – this needs network access and should be verified beforehand.
IR LEDs: Do not look directly at full-power IR LEDs, especially in darkness and close range; eye strain is possible.
Power consumption with the IR lamp ranges from 0.6 W to 6.6 W depending on ambient light; warming during active IR illumination is normal.
The IR filter is not controllable; achieving sharp focus requires manually rotating the lens.
The closest-focus distance claim (1–2 cm) comes from manufacturer notes and should be independently verified for critical applications.

Source and revision record

RPi Camera (F) - Waveshare Wiki
Source revision: 91092
Captured: 2026-08-29T09:59:21+00:00
SHA-256: e8a6c147effc87b1a84332f42326dc6ba208f5d3b62a83127d7468b7090f7084