Using a PC & Webcam as a Dashcam

[gjj]

Does anyone know of software that would allow an old Windows-based PC & webcam to work just like my car dash cam? All I want to do is continually record video of my back yard to files that will automatically get re-written over, unless I manually stop the recording process. I've tried Yawcam, but it uses motion detection which I don't want, and it doesn't re-write over old files. Zoneminder looks like it would work, but I'd have to learn Linux :/ Thanks for any help!

 

[CheckYourLights]

If i understand correctly you want a security camera for your backyard. Instead of going through trying to rig something I would recommend looking into a D-Link DCS series wireless IP cam in possible.

They are sort of cheap. You can find the 932L witch is wireless and only needs power from an outlet once attached to your network for around 40 dollars sometimes on Amazon. There is an Android and iOS app for remote over the internet viewing.
The 932 933 and 942 have IR to see in the dark
The 933 is just like the 932 but has a wifi range extender built in
The 942 costs slightly more but has a micro SD card slot so it can record directly to card. The 932L needs to have a PC running to record.

 

[Dashmellow]

Since this is a Dash Cam forum, it's not really the best place to go looking for answers to this question. You'd likely find more expertise and a broader range of experience with such things at a surveillance camera forum such as the CCTV Forum.

Nevertheless, there are different methods to accomplish what you want. As you might expect, it comes down to how much you want to spend and what quality and capabilities you hope to end up with. I would advise you to avoid using a web cam in favor of an actual surveillance type camera(s). This will give you far better results and can also provide IR capability so you can monitor your property at night. You can also mount this type of camera outdoors if you buy a weatherproof version. These days such cameras are available at modest cost.

One very inexpensive method to turn your old PC into a surveillance DVR is to use a USB video capture DVR dongle. These are very inexpensive and will allow you to connect and control up to four different cameras simultaneously plus audio. While not the best method, using these dongles does work. Do some research and shop around before you buy. This link is an example of what I am talking about.

Here is what they look like:

 

[CheckYourLights]

I've seen what Dashmellow mentions marked as VHS to DVD conversion devices where you would stick VCR RCA plugs into the ends and then plug the USB into the PC as well, but this link is tailored more towards actual muti channel DVR usage.

 

[mel]

A very quick google found a couple of candidates :- http://www.ispyconnect.com/ http://www.contaware.com/content/view/44/46/ Ispy apparently has an option to set a maximium size for its recording directory and will delete old recordings to stay within that.

You could probably find a linux iso already set up with zoneminder or whatever to act as a dvr.

An old pc will likely use a fair bit of power though.

Some people use old android phones or rasberry pi with its camera module as ip cameras/dvr (neither would be much good at night though because of size of sensors and lack of IR, although there is a noIR filter module option for the pi, but the colours in daylight would be totally wrong)

 

[CheckYourLights]

(neither would be much good at night though because of size of sensors and lack of IR, although there is a noIR filter module option for the pi, but the colours in daylight would be totally wrong)

This is the reason I kind of lean more over to a CCTV/the DCS932 set up so you can get decent night time video.

 

[Dashmellow]

I've seen what Dashmellow mentions marked as VHS to DVD conversion devices where you would stick VCR RCA plugs into the ends and then plug the USB into the PC as well, but this link is tailored more towards actual muti channel DVR usage.

Yeah, apparently these devices can be used to transfer different kinds of RCA video feeds to your PC but they were originally introduced and come with 4 camera surveillance capture software. I suggested this because it is such a low budget method that allows the use of "real" surveillance cameras rather the web cams but I think your suggestion about IP cameras makes sense as well. From my personal experience though, outdoor video surveillance requires outdoor waterproof, infra-red enabled cameras whether analogue or IP.

 

[Dashmellow]

A very quick google found a couple of candidates :- http://www.ispyconnect.com/ http://www.contaware.com/content/view/44/46/ Ispy apparently has an option to set a maximium size for its recording directory and will delete old recordings to stay within that.

You could probably find a linux iso already set up with zoneminder or whatever to act as a dvr.

An old pc will likely use a fair bit of power though.

Some people use old android phones or rasberry pi with its camera module as ip cameras/dvr (neither would be much good at night though because of size of sensors and lack of IR, although there is a noIR filter module option for the pi, but the colours in daylight would be totally wrong)

@mel, ispconnect looks very interesting and capable. Nice find!

 

[CheckYourLights]

From my personal experience though, outdoor video surveillance requires outdoor waterproof, infra-red enabled cameras whether analogue or IP.

This is one thing I forget. While I have seen a lot of people use the DSC-932/3/4 outside under a front over hang to keep it out of direct water and it last for years it is technically not outdoor or waterproof certified.

Here is a YouTube video showing the 930L (930 is the model with no night vision.) being left out in the rain for about an hour or so and it seemed to be okay. Not that i would leave it directly in the rain though.

 

[Street Guardian USA]

Blue Iris is the gold standard for PC based DIY DVR/Security
http://blueirissoftware.com/

They have a smart phone app gives you remote access/push notices as well.

 

[Dashmellow]

I want to take high quality pictures with a webcam or with a camera that can be connected to a PC and then can be controlled as a webcam. The best I can find so far is the Microsoft LifeCam Studio but I'm looking for at least 5 Megapixel without interpolation. And it should work well with flash, so no exotic drivers, etc. Any suggestions?

You are quoting a five year old post of mine from a thread about using a web cam as a dash cam. It sounds like you want to shoot high quality still photos directly to your computer with a "web cam" and control the web cam from your computer.

Now that it is 5 years later, web cam technology has come a long way and the Microsoft LifeCam is a good example of that. There are many other good quality web cams available these days and I see that the original link I provided 5 years ago has been updated to 2019 with reviews of the latest web cams. HERE is another link to reviews of current web cams. Web cams are primarily for video, however.

There are a few action/dash cams that can work as good web cams. I use the Mobius 1 and the Mobius Maxi occasionally for recording video direct to my PC, especially with an aftermarket zoom lens installed.

It sounds though as if you are really interested in using a web cam or other type of camera to do high quality still photography direct to a computer, possibly with electronic flash.

That is a whole other topic really that is unrelated to "web cams".

High quality still photography using a PC, laptop or tablet computer is usually done with a DSLR (and certain other digital cameras) connected directly to the device. This is called "tethered shooting". The camera will be connected to a computer with a USB or a Firewire cable and uses specialized software. This is also sometimes done wirelessly via WiFi or wireless transmitter. With tethering software on your computer you can see the image the camera is seeing and you can control the camera directly from the computer. Depending upon the camera you have and the software you use to tether the camera to your computer, you can record the images directly to your PC or record them to the camera --- or both. In some cases you can even focus and zoom the camera directly from a PC, along with access to all (or most) of the camera's basic functions, plus a few features your camera itself may not even have (some via plug-ins).

I've used this method occasionally with Nikon DSLR cameras using their proprietary software, Camera Control Pro (not the Pro 2) that used to come with their cameras for free but now costs about $180.00 USD. It's a useful and very interesting method for shooting, especially in the studio or outdoors for shooting wildlife without disturbing the animals you are photographing.






Below is a screen shot from digiCamControl. It is excellent, comprehensive DSLR tethering software and it is free (donationware). It is compatible with a wide range of DSLR cams, a number of consumer digital cams and even the Xiaomi Yi Action Camera (via WiFi only)

For tethered shooting of Nikons on the Mac see the also excellent but slightly out of date, free (donationware) : Sofortbild



There are many tethering software packages on the market these days some free and some that cost money. You'll find descriptions, reviews, tutorials, software and gear at Tether Tools.

Also - http://www.dslrbodies.com/accessori...lrs/software-products/tethering-software.html

You'll find a basic tethering tutorial HERE.

Finally, if you just want to use a Nikon or Canon DSLR as a web cam on a Windows PC, see THIS C/net article. They recommend SparkoCam