How is the video quality for you guys ?

[mrpk]

This is snapshot of the video from morning today.. I cannot control the weather, but not being able to see plates even this close does not make sense to me. The rear view camera is even worse. No cpl filter installed nothing. WDR is enabled or was last time i checked.. Any ideas ? Anyone got video or screenshots to share when sun is like in the face sort of situation ?

 

[Nigel]

I wonder what the raw video looks like?

 

[Mtrev]

Looks like the camera is pointing quite high so getting more sky which won't help. On my A139 test thread I did some videos which were all on a very sunny day and i think i got better plate capture than this in motion.

 

[mrpk]

Looks like the camera is pointing quite high so getting more sky which won't help. On my A139 test thread I did some videos which were all on a very sunny day and i think i got better plate capture than this in motion.

I will try, but sun will reflect off the hood, there is no winning here is there lol.. did you try the cpl btw ? Does that help with the sun ?

 

[mrpk]

I wonder what the raw video looks like?

View attachment 58327

Let me try to trim the video file and see if i can actually upload that here.. looked pwetty dark in all honesty.

 

[DT MI]

Looks like the camera is pointing quite high so getting more sky which won't help.

Agree. I've found with a number of different cameras that one of the worse conditions for getting good exposures is with bright clouds in the frame. Really sends the AE logic in the camera for a loop.

 

[Mtrev]

I will try, but sun will reflect off the hood, there is no winning here is there lol.. did you try the cpl btw ? Does that help with the sun ?

I’ve got a cpl on it now but didn’t have there. I’ve not really had similar bright sunshine since putting the cpl on.

 

[mrpk]

Here you go a brief clip of it

http://www.a1whs.com/userftp/trips/TrimmedSept15.mp4

 

[Nigel]

Here you go a brief clip of it

http://www.a1whs.com/userftp/trips/TrimmedSept15.mp4

Let me try to trim the video file and see if i can actually upload that here.. looked pwetty dark in all honesty.

I can't get the same frame as you took since it is a different segment of video, but it appears that your video player may be responsible for it being "pretty dark", you could try a different player, or even better a different device, or a video editor which is more likely to get the brightness correct.

My frame grab is definitely lighter than yours, although the plate is less readable, but maybe that is due to extra distance.

This is a straight frame grab, completely unedited from your clip:

 

[Nigel]

I like to put the horizon at 50% height, then those cables around the traffic lights will be horizontal, not curved up towards the sides of the image, and the auto exposure is set up in the camera to provide best exposure at 50%. It can be affected by the hood, but a dark hood should not be a problem.

 

[SawMaster]

I recommend 60% road and 40% sky for cam aim, but 50% usually does OK too.

This scenario is one of the toughest for most dashcams which do not have adjustable "metering" to let you compensate for brightness away from the center or the image. The brightness overwhelms the cam and it darkens the recording to compensate. If you can't adjust the metering then all you can do is adjust the cam aim to reduce whatever is too bright. Sometimes a CPL can help with this at least somewhat- they're worth trying.

Phil

 

[DT MI]

I recommend 60% road and 40% sky for cam aim, but 50% usually does OK too.

Pretty much agree with this general range, but you also have to factor in the color of the vehicle itself as that also affects the metering. Too much of a white vehicle in the frame will overly darken (under expose) the rest whereas too much of a dark vehicle will tend to lighten (over expose). What you want to do is find the setting(s) and camera aim that results in the best exposure for the important stuff, that being the area in front of the car and below the sky.

The most difficult time I had was with a white vehicle when there were bright white clouds in the sky - nothing I did would give me consistent good exposures. Easiest to deal with was a medium grey as it had almost no effect on camera exposure at all.

 

[Dashmellow]

The most difficult time I had was with a white vehicle when there were bright white clouds in the sky - nothing I did would give me consistent good exposures.

As you've mentioned about dark vehicles, I've had the opposite problem with a midnight blue vehicle. I've learned however that this is very much camera dependent. Street Guardian cameras have been the worst with extremely poor, unacceptable dynamic range, even with a newer SGGCX2PRO+ which I bought but returned because the dynamic range was so bad. No lens adjustment would fix the issue. The Viofo A119 V3 camera(s) I bought to replace it handle the same exact conditions in the same vehicle with aplomb.

The above image from the OP is a rather challenging situation for any camera but if it were me I would definitely aim the camera a bit lower.

 

[SawMaster]

With my old Mobius mounted back away from the windshield I didn't have this problem but it has happened with most of the cams I've used since then which were mounted closer. Many traffic lights here are strung high across the far side of the road intersection, and I like having them visible so I can't aim low or I miss them.

Not aesthetically pleasing but one can always arrange some dark cardboard of plastic horizontally at the top or bottom of their cam to limit that part being overexposed by sky or car paint.

In studying my videos almost always there will be a point where I can read a car plate even if before or after glare or exposure problems make it unreadable. It's clearly the same car so as long as I get the plate somewhere I'm OK. I also like having a second cam at least in front and it's different exposure and metering characteristics adds to the chances of capturing details my primary cam might miss

Never a perfect solution, only different ones.

Phil

 

[mrpk]

I wonder if I put a small piece of black tape on the windshield above camera or black paper. Giving it that isolation, anyone tried that ? I do not want to miss having the traffic light or overhead signs from disappearing. Going to post some more clips with camera in downward dog position. I lost my cpl filter it seems I can't seem to find it in the box. I wonder if it ever came in the box to being with.

 

[DT MI]

I wonder if I put a small piece of black tape on the windshield above camera or black paper....

It would actually have to be a fairly large if you plan on putting it on the windshield and want to block most/all the sky (look at how wide the coverage is).

You could try putting some kind of small 'mask' across the upper portion of the lens and play with the positioning to see if helps block enough of the sky to make a difference without adversely affecting overall performance.

 

[mrpk]

It would actually have to be a fairly large if you plan on putting it on the windshield and want to block most/all the sky (look at how wide the coverage is).

You could try putting some kind of small 'mask' across the upper portion of the lens and play with the positioning to see if helps block enough of the sky to make a difference without adversely affecting overall performance.

If only I had a 3d camera I would gone into production producing lens covers with adjustable shutters. Maybe that's an idea of viofo to implement and stand apart from crowd.

 

[Dashmellow]

You could try putting some kind of small 'mask' across the upper portion of the lens and play with the positioning to see if helps block enough of the sky to make a difference without adversely affecting overall performance.

Yes, that could be a good solution.

In professional photography and cinematography this is accomplished with the use of graduated ND filters. (ND=neutral density). They are available in different ND values. So, one could use a circular graduated ND filter or buy a flat polycarbonate one and then cut it down to size to work with a dash cam.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graduated_neutral-density_filter

 

[mrpk]

Yes, that could be a good solution.

In professional photography and cinematography this is accomplished with the use of graduated ND filters. (ND=neutral density). They are available in different ND values. So, one could use a circular graduated ND filter or buy a flat polycarbonate one and then cut it down to size to work with a dash cam.

View attachment 58346

View attachment 58345

Haa there goes my business idea of using sharpie and plexi glass to cut to size and use lol... didnt know they already got something like that.. does amazon carry these things ?

 

[Dashmellow]

Haa there goes my business idea of using sharpie and plexi glass to cut to size and use lol... didnt know they already got something like that.. does amazon carry these things ?

Yes, Amazon sells these, however as I mentioned, these are generally used for professional photography and cinema and so they are not exactly cheap.

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=graduated+ND+filter&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

You may find something at a better price on eBay and elsewhere.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=graduated+ND+filter&_sacat=0

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/238968-REG/Cokin_CP121S_P121S_Graduated_G2_Soft.html