Window Tint ?

[Ca_Lvn]

So I having so much fun with my dash cam I'm thinking about one for the rear window , now the question my window is tinted @ 20% limo black is consered 5% my side windows are 35% great for cutting down heat glar and privacy, but how would that affect a dash cam? Don't really want to cut out the tint for the camera.

Thanks for your input.

 

[jokiin]

what camera do you use up front?

 

[MiiHere]

During the day shouldn't be too bad, depending on the camera you could mess with the brightness settings etc. it's night that will be the issue I imagine.

 

[Street Guardian USA]

The SG9665GC you can boost the EV to compensate for Tinted windows. The Sony IMX322 helps with night a lot as it is, so some tint isn't a big deal with raised EV

 

[jaro]

The SG9665GC you can boost the EV to compensate for Tinted windows. The Sony IMX322 helps with night a lot as it is, so some tint isn't a big deal with raised EV

this is exactly what I did in my car. Don't mind that the recording is a little bright during the day, as long I have a viewable recording at night.

 

[samsara]

I use have factory installed 20% tint on the rear of my car, and my rear 720 cam (Blackvue 650-2) works fine, even at night. Similarly, my front setup with 1080 works through a factory installed sun-band as if it wasn't there!

 

[Ca_Lvn]

what camera do you use up front?

I have the SG9665GC from Pier28 that I am extremely happy with.

 

[Ca_Lvn]

I use have factory installed 20% tint on the rear of my car, and my rear 720 cam (Blackvue 650-2) works fine, even at night. Similarly, my front setup with 1080 works through a factory installed sun-band as if it wasn't there!

I installed my front camera SG9665GC just below that factory tint line , I'm interested in trying above it at the top of the wind shield wonder if that would improve some of the glare I get (CPL Lense Installed)not enough to be a big deal.

 

[AllStrobedUp]

My windshield is 30% and my back window is 5. Here is a video out the back window.

 

[Dashmellow]

I use lateral dash cams facing out the side darkly tinted rear windows of a pick-up truck and I get excellent results by simply increasing the exposure value on the cameras by approximately 10-15%. Of course the amount of EV compensation you choose depends on the camera, sensor, lens and aperture of the particular camera and of course the strength of the window tint.

The drawback of shooting dash cam video through a dark tinted window is that you will experience an increase in motion blur in some lighting situations as the camera attempts to compensate for the conditions. Of course, night footage will experience some compromise as well. Most of the time this problem is negligible and having a rear or side camera in addition to your primary front facing camera is certainly worthwhile, with or without the increased motion blur or less effective night performance.

Here is a recent screen shot from a Mobius with "B" lens at dusk under a modestly overcast sky. (left side) Exposure increase is plus 15. (128 +/- EV adjustment scale available on the Mobius)


Side view through dark tinted glass. EV adjustment + 1/3 - (right side)


Both of the above examples were shot through this tinted window.

 

[Ca_Lvn]

My windshield is 30% and my back window is 5. Here is a video out the back window.

Looks good! Were is your camera mounted apears to be offset from the window?

 

[AllStrobedUp]

On top of my Emergency lightbar.

 

[Ca_Lvn]

I use lateral dash cams facing out the side darkly tinted rear windows of a pick-up truck and I get excellent results by simply increasing the exposure value on the cameras by approximately 10-15%. Of course the amount of EV compensation you choose depends on the camera, sensor, lens and aperture of the particular camera and of course the strength of the window tint.

The drawback of shooting dash cam video through a dark tinted window is that you will experience an increase in motion blur in some lighting situations as the camera attempts to compensate for the conditions. Of course, night footage will experience some compromise as well. Most of the time this problem is negligible and having a rear or side camera in addition to your primary front facing camera is certainly worthwhile, with or without the increased motion blur or less effective night performance.

Here is a recent screen shot from a Mobius with "B" lens at dusk under a modestly overcast sky. (left side) Exposure increase is plus 15. (128 +/- EV adjustment scale available on the Mobius)
View attachment 21076

Side view through dark tinted glass. EV adjustment + 1/3 - (right side)
View attachment 21074

Both of the above examples were shot through this tinted window.
View attachment 21077

Im sure there is some trade off but having tint out weighs that ,that is some really dark tint, surprised how well the camera captures.

 

[Dashmellow]

Im sure there is some trade off but having tint out weighs that ,that is some really dark tint, surprised how well the camera captures.

Yes, the reason I posted these shots was to demonstrate how well dash cams can work behind such dark tint.

Another benefit of dark tinted glass is that it makes it much harder to see the cameras. I still get a kick out of this parking mode screen shot of a guy checking out all the stuff on my back seat while I was in the store shopping not realizing there was a camera right in front of his face.

 

[Rajagra]

Surely normal automatic exposure should deal with tint without the need for exposure compensation. Reduced light through the tint is exactly the same as if it were a bit darker outside.
It might make it more important to get the exposure right by tweaking the settings, but other than that, I think some people are predicting a problem that doesn't exist.

An analogy: If you put a neutral density filter on an SLR camera set to auto, you will get slower shutter speed and/or wider aperture, but the resulting exposure will be the same.

Edit> Quick test using a Mobius and an ND4 filter. The filter cuts out 75% of light yet the difference is fairly small (25% darker). This may be because the indoor lighting is too dark for the Mobius to cope with after going through the ND4. In daylight there may be no difference.



Slow shutter speed and associated motion blur is another matter. Using exposure compensation to brighten the image might actually make that worse.

 

[Dashmellow]

Surely normal automatic exposure should deal with tint without the need for exposure compensation. Reduced light through the tint is exactly the same as if it were a bit darker outside.
It might make it more important to get the exposure right by tweaking the settings, but other than that, I think some people are predicting a problem that doesn't exist.

An analogy: If you put a neutral density filter on an SLR camera set to auto, you will get slower shutter speed and/or wider aperture, but the resulting exposure will be the same.

Those of us with actual long time hands on experience using dash cams behind tinted glass know better, so we adjust them accordingly. As is unfortunately so often the case @Rajagra, you speak in terms of how you imagine things to work in the real world as opposed to how they are.

 

[Dashmellow]

Surely normal automatic exposure should deal with tint without the need for exposure compensation. Reduced light through the tint is exactly the same as if it were a bit darker outside.
It might make it more important to get the exposure right by tweaking the settings, but other than that, I think some people are predicting a problem that doesn't exist.

An analogy: If you put a neutral density filter on an SLR camera set to auto, you will get slower shutter speed and/or wider aperture, but the resulting exposure will be the same.

Edit> Quick test using a Mobius and an ND4 filter. The filter cuts out 75% of light yet the difference is fairly small (25% darker). This may be because the indoor lighting is too dark for the Mobius to cope with after going through the ND4. In daylight there may be no difference.

View attachment 21081

Slow shutter speed and associated motion blur is another matter. Using exposure compensation to brighten the image might actually make that worse.

Dash cams have extremely primitive exposure measurement and adjustment capabilities when compared with SLRs. They also don't have lenses with adjustable apertures. They don't even have actual shutters, per se, as it is all done in firmware, hence dash cams don't function like traditional cameras.

Neutral Density filters have extremely refined light transmission characteristics and optical properties and despite superficial similarities they are not quite the same as tinted windows in automobiles.

Critical reasoning requires comparing apple to apples. Actual experience preempts speculation.

My remarks here regarding the use of dashboard cameras behind dark tinted glass are based on nearly four years of ongoing experimentation and daily use involving seven different brands and eight separate cameras and I can say with absolute certainty that using dash cams in this manner will require an increased Exposure Value adjustment to achieve acceptable results.

By sheer coincidence of timing, just three days ago, thanks to a break in the harsh winter weather where I live I swapped a lateral facing, behind tinted glass Mobius "B" lens camera for one with a C2 lens module gifted to me by another DCT member that I've been anxious to try out in my vehicle. As soon as I examined the first sample footage I realized that I had forgotten to increase the exposure adjustment because the video was too dark. After increasing the exposure adjustment by 17 clicks and trying it again, things look perfect.