Not long after getting the camera in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, you can speak with Robbie over at the Hateno Ancient Lab. He’ll offer you some crucial upgrades for the Purah Pad, including the Hyrule Compendium, which will house hundreds of pictures if you can unlock them.
The Compendium is a great way to keep track of certain monsters and materials thanks to its connection to Sensor+, but even if you take the quick option and just buy the pictures from Robbie, you will be in for a very long ride unless you know what you are doing.
Buying Pictures From Robbie
To make it quick, Robbie’s boast about already having every picture is accurate, but there are a few reasons this might not be the preferred way to acquire most pictures.
He only charges for random pictures from a set, with each picture type at 100 Rupees a piece (except for Elite Enemies, which are 500 rupees). In short, don’t buy from Robbie unless you are planning to finish a set, as you can’t buy specific images, and the price is high enough to just wait until you’re incredibly rich.
Compendium Creatures
At 92 entries, the Creatures will be all non-aggressive animal types you come across. Some will be elixir ingredients such as bugs, some will be food like fish, and then there are ridable Creatures like the many Horse variants. When it comes to the pictures, bear in mind that some will be much trickier, specifically bugs and birds that usually fly away if you get too close while trying to take their picture.
A trick with bugs is to grab a bunch and then hold them, then just release them and quickly take a picture. The camera’s sensor is weird, so this isn’t a foolproof method. Prepare to save and load if you try this method.
Compendium Monsters
Another beefy category, this time with a total of 110 entries. This is every enemy, from basic to boss. Remember that most temple bosses can be found in the depths (in case you miss your shot the first time). In the same vein, every form of Ganondorf counts as a separate entry, so if you miss a picture during the final boss battle, then you’ll have to replay it.
When it comes to the near countless enemy variants, forms such as Black and Silver don’t start spawning until you’ve reached a hidden level threshold in the game, and while the weaker forms will start showing up less often, they will never stop appearing, so don’t worry about missing your chance with them. Other than that, just remember a rule of thumb for elements is that fire enemies tend to be found in Eldin Mountain, ice enemies tend to be found in the Hebra Mountains, and electric enemies tend to be found in the Gerudo Desert.
Compendium Materials
Materials is a list of 126 fruit, veg, plants, and monster parts. The fruit and vegetables don’t move, so you can either take a picture before you grab one, or hold onto a bunch and dump them on the ground. For monster parts, not every part has a picture — you usually only need the horns — and hornless monsters will have a substitute. Dragons need both their horn and a shard from the spikes on their backs.
Compendium Equipment
Equipment is the category you will most likely want to cave into paying Robbie. Not only are there a whopping 175 entries, but many weapons dropped from basic enemies are shockingly rare. Many weapon types only drop in certain regions, but they don’t become guaranteed drops when you are in the right area either. You also need a picture of both the weapon’s decayed form and its pristine form (if they exist). Some fans have noticed Like Likes drop chests containing regional weapons, but even those aren’t a guarantee. This does however make unique weapons incredibly easy to grab pictures of, as they always spawn in the same place.
If you fuse anything to a piece of equipment, the picture will still count. If both fused items are equipment, then you will have to position the camera until you lock onto the correct one.
There are guides for some equipment you’ll need:
Compendium Treasure
The Compendium finally cuts you a break at the end, there are only 6 entries. You need:
Reward For Filling The Compendium
Once you’ve filled the Compendium, speak with Robbie again. He’ll congratulate you on your hard work, and give you a new fabric for your paraglider.