Configure camera controls

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Users can control the zoom, tilt, position, and rotation of the camera using gestures on the map. You can also configure the camera programmatically.

The Camera Position

The map view is modeled as a camera looking at a specific point in space. The position and orientation of the camera are defined by latitude/longitude/altitude coordinates, heading, tilt, range, and roll.

Latitude, longitude, altitude

The camera's initial position is defined by setting the latitude, longitude, and altitude. These values combine to determine where the camera is positioned, not the where the camera is pointing to, or centered on.

Latitude can be between -90 and 90 degrees, inclusive. Longitude ranges between -180 and 180 degrees, inclusive. Altitude is specified in meters above sea level.

Values above or below this range will be clamped to the nearest value within this range. For example, specifying a latitude of 100 will set the value to 90.

Heading

The heading specifies the compass direction of the map, measured in degrees clockwise from true North. North corresponds to 0 degrees, East to 90 degrees, South to 180 degrees, and West to 270 degrees.

Tilt

The tilt specifies the angle of the camera with respect to the vertical axis, measured in degrees. A tilt of 0 degrees means the camera is pointing straight down towards the Earth (nadir). A tilt of 90 degrees means the camera is pointed horizontally in the direction specified by the heading.

Range

The range defines the distance in meters between the camera's own position and the center of the map. The range can vary from zero meters (very close up) up to sixty-three million meters, allowing for views from very close up all the way to a truly global perspective. This effectively controls how "zoomed in" or "zoomed out" the map appears.

Roll

The roll sets the angle of the camera with respect to the horizon, measured in degrees. This parameter can be used to create effects like banking during flight simulations or even a full barrel roll, rotating the camera around its viewing axis.

Controlling the camera

The following code sample demonstrates how to control the camera programmatically.

Swift

public static var sanFrancisco: Camera = .init(
  latitude: 37.7845812,
  longitude: -122.3660241,
  altitude: 585,
  heading: 288.0,
  tilt: 75.0,
  roll: 0.0,
  range: 100)