File path of image on iPhone - iphone

Question

I'm interested in uploading a file (image) from an iPhone library/camera roll to a remote web server. I already have a script working that will upload any file from the phone to a web server. However, I assume that to upload an image from the iPhone, I need the PATH to said image. Is there any way this can be done, once the user picks said image from the camera roll? I.e., how do I get the file path of an image selected in the camera roll?
I have tried to no avail.
Thanks!

Answer 1

You will want to look at the ALAssetsLibrary functions - these let you access photos and videos that are stored in your Photos and Videos libraries on your iOS device.
Specifically, something like:
ALAssetsLibrary *assets = [[ALAssetsLibrary alloc] init];
[assets enumerateGroupsWithTypes:ALAssetsGroupSavedPhotos
usingBlock:^(ALAssetsGroup *group, BOOL *stop) {
[group enumerateAssetsUsingBlock:^(ALAsset *asset, NSUInteger index, BOOL *stop) {
//the ALAsset should be one of your photos - stick it in an array and after this runs, use it however you need
}
}
failureBlock:^(NSError *error) {
//something went wrong, you can't access the photo gallery
}
];
EDIT
If you are using the UIImagePickerController rather than a purely programatical approach, this simplifies it greatly:
In:
- (void)imagePickerController:(UIImagePickerController *)picker didFinishPickingMediaWithInfo:(NSDictionary *)info
{
UIImage *img = [info objectForKey:UIImagePickerControllerEditedImage];
//you can use UIImagePickerControllerOriginalImage for the original image
//Now, save the image to your apps temp folder,
NSString *path = [NSTemporaryDirectory() stringByAppendingPathComponent:#"upload-image.tmp"];
NSData *imageData = UIImagePNGRepresentation(img);
//you can also use UIImageJPEGRepresentation(img,1); for jpegs
[imageData writeToFile:path atomically:YES];
//now call your method
[someClass uploadMyImageToTheWebFromPath:path];
}