Camera showing Black and White in Windows 11

Some users encountered that their camera was showing in black and white on their Windows 11 computer. According to the reports, this problem occurs on both the internal camera and external webcam. If you encounter this issue on your Windows 11 computer, the solutions explained in this article will help you.

Camera is showing in Black and White in Windows 11

If your camera is showing in Black and White on your Windows 11/10 computer, use the following suggestions to fix this problem:

Open Windows 11 Settings
Check your Camera settings
Run Camera Troubleshooter
Disable and re-enable the Camera
Roll back the camera driver
Update or reinstall the camera driver
Check your app settings
Reset the Camera app
Roll back or reinstall the graphics card driver
Uninstall and reinstall the Camera app

All these fixes are explained in detail below:

1] Open Windows Settings

First, open Windows 11 Settings and go to Bluetooth & devices > Cameras. Select your Camera. If you see a message like the one below, another application is using your Camera. In this case, that app has changed the camera settings.

An app is using the camera now. Settings changed here or in the app will affect the camera preview below.

Now, you need to troubleshoot in a Clean Boot state. Start your computer in a Clean Boot state and launch the camera app. See if the issue persists. If the issue does not occur in the Clean Boot state, you can identify the problematic app easily. Start some of the disabled apps and services and restart your computer. Launch the Camera app and see if the issue occurs. When the problem reappears, one of the apps or services you have just enabled is the culprit.

2] Check your Camera settings

Check your camera settings. Follow the steps provided below:

Open Windows 11 Settings.
Go to Bluetooth & devices > Camera. Select your camera.
Expand the Basic settings tab and change the Saturation level.

You can also try to reset the Camera settings to the default values by clicking on the Reset settings button.

3] Run Camera Troubleshooter

Run the camera troubleshooter and see if it fixes the issue. You can run the Camera Troubleshooter through the Get Help app in Windows 11.

4] Disable and re-enable the Camera

If the problem still persists, try to disable and re-enable the Camera through the Device Manager.

The steps to do this are as follows:

Open the Device Manager.
Expand the Cameras branch.
Right-click on your camera and select Disable device.
Now, right-click on it again and select Enable device.

Open the Camera app and see if the issue is fixed.

5] Roll back the camera driver

Your system may have the previous version of the camera driver. If so, you can roll back your camera driver to the previous version. If the roll back driver option is greyed out in the Device Manager, you can try other methods to roll back it to the earlier version.

6] Update or reinstall the camera driver

If rolling back the camera driver does not fix the issue or you were not able to roll it back to the previous version, check for its updated version on the official website of your computer manufacturer. Download the latest version of your camera driver from there and install it manually.

7] Check your app settings

The issue may also be associated with the app you use, for example, Zoom, Skype, etc. Check the settings of these apps.

Zoom users need to follow the steps provided below:

Open the Zoom app.
Click on your profile icon on the top right side and select Settings.
Select the Background & effects category from the left side.
Select Video filters from the right side.
Now, select None.

Follow these steps if you use the Skype app:

Open the Skype app.
Click on your profile icon on the top left side and select Settings.
Select Audio & Video from the left side.
Click Webcam settings on the right side.
Under the Video Proc Amp tab, click on the Default button.
Click Apply and then click OK.

8] Reset the Camera app

Reset the Camera app and see if it works. Follow the instructions provided below:

Open Windows 11 Settings and go to Apps > Installed apps.
Search for Camera. Click on the three dots next to the Camera and select Advanced options.
Scroll down and click Reset.

If the issue persists, try repairing the Camera app.

9] Roll back or reinstall the graphics card driver

If your camera is still showing in black and white, the problem may be with your graphics card driver. Try to roll back the GPU driver.

Open the Device Manager.
Expand the Display Adapters branch.
Right-click on your GPU driver and select Properties.
Go to the Driver tab and click on the Roll Back Driver option.

If the Roll Back driver button is greyed out, boot in Safe Mode and see if the button is clickable. If yes, roll it back to the previous version.

If rolling back the GPU driver does not fix the issue, perform its clean installation. Download the latest version of your GPU driver from the official website of your computer manufacturer. Now, download and install the DDU tool. Boot in Safe Mode and run the DDU tool to completely remove the GPU driver. After doing that, run the installer file to reinstall the GPU driver.

10] Uninstall and reinstall the Camera app

You can also try uninstalling and reinstalling the Camera app. The Windows Camera app is available in the Microsoft Store.

Open Windows 11 Settings.
Go to Apps > Installed apps.
Search for the Camera app.
Click on the three dots and select Uninstall.

After uninstalling the Camera app, restart your computer. Now, install it again from the Microsoft Store.

That’s it. I hope this helps.

Why is my PC displaying black and white?

If the greyscale color filter is active, a Windows PC will display in black and white. You can check this in settings. Open your system settings and go to Accessibility > Color filters. Turn off the Color filters.

How do I turn off black mode on Windows 11?

To turn off Dark Mode on Windows 11, open Settings and go to Personalization > Colors. Select Light in the Choose your mode drop-down menu. If your PC is stuck in Dark Mode, check the Group Policy or Registry Settings.