I need to install cv2 for a script that has been written for me. I tried pip install cv2 and pip install open_cv and got the same problem - a warning message from dist.py and complains about zlib being not found. No cv2 installed. I also tried pyopenvc and pip install opencv-python.
So, I went to the opencv site and downloaded the relevant exe. Ran it - generated a heap of subdirectories and a make file and stuff.
What do I do now?
Install opencv-python (which is an unofficial pre-built OpenCV package for Python) by issuing the following command:
pip install opencv-python
run the following command by creating a virtual enviroment using python 3 and run
pip3 install opencv-python
to check it has installed correctly run
python3 -c "import cv2"
In pip package management, there are 4 different OpenCV packages all using the same namespace, cv2. Although they are not officially supported by OpenCV.org, they are commonly used in developers' community. You could install any of them using the following command:
pip install PACKAGE_NAME
where PACKAGE_NAME can be
opencv-python (only contains main modules)opencv-contrib-python (contains both main and contrib modules)opencv-python-headless (same as opencv-python but without GUI functionality)opencv-contrib-python-headless (same as opencv-contrib-python but without GUI functionality)You should only install one of them depending on your needs. If you accidentally installed multiple of them in the same environment, you can remove them using pip uninstall before installing the correct one again.
For more details, you can refer to the project description of OpenCV on Wheels.
As of 2021, all of these 4 packages are official OpenCV projects. Source: OpenCV Website.