Making our Meadow Blog

RIP Meadowcam V1?

I had held out some hope that the Coolpix would still be
useable. While the new circuit for the Canon is being finished I thought I would
have a go at filming the snow melt (when it does). I have managed to acquire a
256Mb card which does write and would have lasted between 40 to 60 days on the current
setup. But strangely it would not write to the card when tested on the snow,
only relatively close subjects. It took too long to write to the card. I tried
changing the image size and resolution and then discovered that the camera now
does not save any of its settings when turned on and off. I tested it to see if
using a 128Mb card but this suffered from the same problem So I am limited to a
maximum of 314 images, which will make for a pretty short film! I may set it up
in the garden, where I can change the cards regularly. I assume that the auto focusing
it confused by the snow, although I did try using more complicated views and
the same problem occurred. Alternatively if I can get the processor to be
reprogrammed to enable it to stay open it might work elsewhere.

 

 

Fogging of lens and glass

One more thought, whenever I have checked on the cam over
the last week or so the outside of the box was fogged up and there was severe
condensation. Some sort of hydrophobic coating or gel would be useful to
prevent this. The only ones I have found so far is made by Oakley and is
designed for sunglasses and RAIN X for windscreens. The latter looks a lot
cheaper and more readily available so I will test that first.

 

Hummingbirds

Pondcam is back online again now, i need to move it around to find a better spot but i will never get hummingbirds. Unlike this fantastic site i found while buying my mum some rainforest for christmas:

http://www.wildlifefocus.org/webcam/

It seems to crash quite a lot which is reassusring... Even Sir David Attenborough's mates have problems. Maybe its all my friends having a look. But when it does work there is nothing better than hummingbirds.

Thanks Canon and CHDK

Unfortunately the voltage on the Coolpix circuit is regulated to 8.4v so this will not work with the new camera unless i can change the voltage regulator on the existing circuit easily. If so i could be up and running. I manageed to get a plug for the AC adapter at Maplins (they really are so helpful they opened up 10 packets to find the right one and smiled as they did it!) so now i just need to solder the plug on some wire and we are away. This is proof how uch better canon compacts are for this sort of thing than nikon cameras with their complicated and unnecessarily obstruse proprietary sockets.

However i checked on the coolpix yesterday and it had only taken 13 shots. When i checked on it this morning it had still only taken 13 shots. I had a quick look and a wire had come loose on the switch. I have brought it in to solder the connections.

Which means i need to learn how to solder.

I managed to solve the problem with the A560 with the helf of Microfunguy on the CHDK forum (so much great stuff here i usrge everyone to look) and now it will launch the intervalometer script. The downside is that it will only do so when the camera is turned on via the script of the battery being physically inserted. When the ac adapter is turned on and off to simulate the action of the light detector / timer circuit it needds to be turned on again using the on/off sitch on the camera. This means it is not suitable for this project but it is good to have another one available for future smaller scale projects.

The CHDK is such a great function, and is the other great reason for using canon for these projects. The number of possibilities is amazing!

Canon may save the day

After a very frustrating few days trying to bid for suitable Canon Point & Shoot Camera on Ebay i have finally managed to get one, and after an evening of of tinkering with CHDK (and quite a bit of swearing) i have got to the point that the S2IS i have will start an intervalometer script and happily click away until the power is removed (batteries taken out) and then when power restored it will start off again. Now i need to get an ac adapter with the appropriate sized plug and we are away. I think that the voltage (7.4V) is similar to the Coolpix 995 so it might not need another circuit - which would be great! I did get two cameras (i ended up losing on so many that i started bidding on several at once and wound up getting 2!) and the other one seemed not to work, but after posting a request on the forum i got some really great helpful advice. So i may be able to use this one (an A560) for the Meadowcam 2...

Trial Meadowcam up and running

After lots of hassle i have finally got the Meadowcam up in the back garden to test its waterproofing, stability etc. Pictures are shown here: http://meadowmaker.typepad.co.uk/photos/meadowcam/index.html.

It seems to be working ok. Although i am thinking of not using the Coolpix (but then again...) I am testing it with the coolpix in to see if this will work ok with the lowest size and resolution settings to see what effect this has.

This change of heart has been effected by the realisation that the alternative D70 camera would be probably not work after all - the setting for the remote shooting mode did  remain when I tested it every 10 mins for an hour, but if the camera were switched off for several hours and turned on it will revert to the single / continuous shot. I checked with Nikon whether it can be made the default shooting mode and they said no. So that is that option shot out of the water as well. I may be in the position of having a box and no camera again...

Post panel and box installed

I’ve sort of abandoned the Coolpix option now and I’m getting another circuit made using my D70 instead. But I have got the box, solar panel post and everything else up in the garden testing its stability, waterproofing etc. I’m quite pleased with that side of things and will post some pictures later. I was thinking I could use the Coolpix for the crazy garden 4 dimensional time warp thing. On the subject of which 
I saw Life on Monday and they did pretty much the same thing in an oak wood – it’s worth looking at their site: 
 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00p90d6#p005hh0y
 
It’s worth a look – scroll down to the bottom it’s chapter 11 Life on Location – Time Warp.
 
They obviously had to make it look really pretty (that’s the problem when you let graphic designers get involved it all has to look …nice) so they did a tracking shot to get a background, then built a full size model in a blue room with the growing plants indoors in controlled lighting  conditions and digitally projected the background on and built up the timelapse images as layers. It shows that it can be done, but the results if it is done completely in the field will be a bit crap. But more real surely! Anyway I want to have a go once I get this one up and running.
 
I’ve just realise that I might have a major problem with the D70 after all and it might not work anyway – I have tested it by turning it on and off at 10 min intervals and it retains the IR remote setting when turned on and off. The question is will it do this after a night of being turned off – I think the answer is probably not! I have emailed Nikon's reliably slow support site, but i think I will need to try it out before I continue. In which case it will be back to the coolpix and dashing back and forth to Ali's field twice a week for a year. Not sure my marriage will survive that. Hmph. I might need to actually buy another camera! Or use my prized D200, which i am really not happy about.

A new solution

Neil at REUK has come up with the goods again and reckons he can make a controller using the AC adapter and the ML L3 wireless remote at a very reasonable price, hopefully with more control over the timer. I'll send it off tomorrow hopefully should be back next week. The priority now is getting the box thoroughly tested and ready to go. Then at a push i might be able to get it installed by the 20th... although i still have to work out how to set up the camera, if I suddenly have all this choice on my hands denied to me with the Coolpix 995. Some research is needed i think.

I have sealed the box today so hopefully i will be able to get it mounted on the test post over the next couple of days (when i get a bracket for the solar panel sorted out).

Trials and tribulations

Tested the D70 with the adapter and the ML-L3 type IR remotes i got from some dodgy Chinese replica company and as expected they worked very haphazardly - good job i got a Nikon one as well. Unfortunately the D70 is a bit haphazard in how it responds to being turned on and off, in particular i returns to its default setting of Continuous Mode rather than remote shutter mode which obviously won't work. I assume there is a setting which can make this the default moed, but it doesn't always return to the continuous mode so there may be another factor at work.

It looks like i will need to consider this option, the attempt at partitioning the memory card worked, in that it was partitioned, and didn't work in that the camera still does not write to it anyway.

Steen  wondered what the flashing hourglass icon on the screen was. According to one report i have seen on the internet (which is usfeul as ever) this is not in the manual and is an indicator that the card is too large to write in the allowed time. Steen then suggested I should contact Neil and have the processor on the circuit reconfigured to allow it enough time towrite to the card. This seems sensible, i'll give it ago.

However i have just looked at the manual and here it states on p 33 that it flashes when the date/time is not set...I set it using the bypass mode set up on the circuit but it seems to disappear since it is not shut down properly. However the card definately writes to a 16Mb and a 64Mb card and the date still flashes so this is not related to not writing to cards.

Perhaps i can trial it on the lowest setting using the 64Mb card i have, and see if i can find a 128Mb card in the meantime. I am still reluctant to put my D70 in a field in the middle of nowhere.

The bracket holding the panel on the post cap/tripod head fell apart, presumaply the cap is made of PE.

On the upside the box is ready, just needs sealing and the pond cam is back onstream.

Coolpix 4500? Nah!

It looks like the Coolpix 4500 will not work out as a viable option, they end up around £150 - £200 on Ebay which is a lot more than i am willing to spend. I am currently watching a bargain Canon EOS 20D which might work with compatible lenses i already own, alternatively I have an AC cable for the D70 on its way to me so that opens up this possibility at the lowest price.

The partitioning idea of Steen's  has ended up being a lot more complex than either of us initially thought and will need to be done on a Linux platform. I will try to get it sorted out this weekend...

The bracket idea i was planning involved using 60mm x 60mm steel brackets to hold the battery in position and also support the camera. I was going to rivet them together, then rivet them onto an aluminium plate and use a swinging arm to allow the camera to be rotated and the card to be easily removed. But while doing it I realised that there is no reason that the bracket supporting the camera needs to be connected to the brackets containing the battery (the reason i am using the same brackets is that i happen to have a box of these brackets available!). By bolting rather than riveting i can change the configuration of the brackets to support the camera in different positions and by using a combination and bolts and washers i now have a rotating bracket. I will get some wingnuts at the weekend to allow the rotating bracket to be locked in position. I will then glue the brackets holding the battery in position and bolt the camera support brackets. Then i just need to get someway of supporting and adjusting the position of the whole unit on the shelf. I may also install the post on the meadow at home to test the supports etc. Hmm thats a point must get some weights...