So before starting you’ll need to make sure you have these in your computer:
Visual Studio 2012 (You can download the 90-day trial version from here)
OpenCV 2.4.2 (You can download it from here)
Extract OpenCV in a folder named OpenCV-2.4.2 in C drive.[Note: You can change the path and folder name but then you wont be able to use the instructions as they are and you'll have to make modifications]
There are five simple steps that we have to make sure that we follow to get OpenCV up and running smoothly: (Click on the images to enlarge them) STEP-1
Add the path to OpenCV runtime dll’s (Dynamic Linked Libraries) to your Environment Path variable:
[For 64-bit Machines] C:\OpenCV-2.4.2\opencv\build\x64\vc10\bin;C:\OpenCV-2.4.2\opencv\build\common\tbb\intel64\vc10;
[For 32-bit Machines] C:\OpenCV-2.4.2\opencv\build\x86\vc10\bin;C:\OpenCV-2.4.2\opencv\build\common\tbb\ia32\vc10;
The first path[C:\OpenCV-2.4.2\opencv\build\x64\vc10\bin]is for OpenCV runtime dll’s and the second path[C:\OpenCV-2.4.2\opencv\build\common\tbb\intel64\vc10]adds Intel Threaded Building Blocks toenable parallel code in OpenCV. Adding Intel TBB dll’s is OPTIONAL. Without it you won’t be able to use multiple cores unless you multithreadedyour own application. STEP-2
Create a new Visual Studio Project. Open Visual Studio -> New Project -> Visual C++ -> Win32 Console Application. Click OK. Thenclick Next -> Finish. STEP-3
[This step is for people with 64-bit machines. People with 32-bit machines can skip it.] Now change the build configuration by going to Build menu-> Configuration Manager.
Click OK. Close the ConfigurationManager. Change the configuration in the main window to Release, if it isnt that already. http://karanjthakkar.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/step-31.jpg?w=698 STEP-4
Now we add the OpenCV libraries to our OpenCV project properties. Go to View -> Other Windows -> Property Manager. Then openthe Release | x64 (32-bit users should open Release| Win32) Property page by double clicking on it: http://karanjthakkar.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/step-41.jpg?w=300&h=160
Go to Linker -> General -> Additional Library Directories. Add this path over there:
[For 64-bit Machines] C:\OpenCV-2.4.2\opencv\build\x64\vc10\lib;
[For 32-bit Machines] C:\OpenCV-2.4.2\opencv\build\x86\vc10\lib;
Next, go to Linker -> Input -> Additional Dependencies. http://karanjthakkar.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/step-4i.jpg?w=300&h=213
Add the following dependencies to it:
STEP-5
Now we add the OpenCV include directories to our OpenCV project properties. In the same Property page, go to C/C++ -> General ->Additional Include Directories and add the following path:
[For both 32-bit and 64-bit Machines] C:\OpenCV-2.4.2\opencv\build\include\opencv;C:\OpenCV-2.4.2\opencv\build\include;
[Optional: Go to C/C++ -> Preprocessor -> Preprocessor Definitions and add this:_CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS; Helpsavoid unnecessary warnings sometimes]
OKAY! So now we are done with the adjustments. Go ahead and try this simple code which displays the video stream from your webcam.
01#include"stdafx.h"02#include"opencv2/highgui/highgui.hpp"03 04/**05*@function main06*/07int main( int argc, const char**argv )08{09CvCapture*capture;10IplImage*frame = 0;11 12while (true)13{14//Readthe video stream15capture= cvCaptureFromCAM(1);16frame= cvQueryFrame( capture );17 18//create a window to display detected faces19cvNamedWindow("SampleProgram",CV_WINDOW_AUTOSIZE);20 21//display face detections22cvShowImage("SampleProgram",frame);23 24int c= cvWaitKey(10);25if((char)c== 27 ) { exit(0);}26 27}28 29//clean up and release resources30cvReleaseImage(&frame);31 32return 0;33 34}
Once you get this basic sample up and running, you can try out other Visual Studio projects like face-detection and face-extraction I’veput up on github.
Post your feedback or any problems that you encounter in comments.
Some blog posts that helped me figure stuff out:
1. http://jepsonsblog.blogspot.in/2012/07/installation-guide-opencv-24-with.html
2. http://siddhantahuja.wordpress.com/2011/07/18/getting-started-with-opencv-2-3-in-microsoft-visual-studio-2010-in-windows-7-64-bit/