Time lapse camera for construction?

[ErVikingo]

Reading about this on another thread got me thinking.

Any recommendations? Thinking of installing one in my lot to document the construction process. Don't want to break the bank and must be weatherproof.

Ideas???

 

[Blk88GT]

I used a Linksys security camera, but kept it in a window of my house during the build.

 

[ErVikingo]

This will be a construction of a house and garage so there is no structure there right now. I'll have to attach it to a pole or tree (hopefully safe but easy to reach to get the chip and replace batteries)

 

[JCQuick]

go pros taking time lapse photos you can pick up the older hd2 for around $100.00

 

[Strouty]

+1 for go pro you can set them at multiple intervals as close as 1 second.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=155171&highlight=time+lapse+tower

 

[E.rodz]

+ 1 on the go pro there are a few downfalls though I use mine all the time for time lapse you can take picts every sec or 30 min apart a full batt. charge setting the camera at 30 sec.batt. lasts about 2 hrs with a standard batt you can buy a bigger battery pack to last double that the waterproof case and versatility is awesome. It also uses alot of memory on your computer. another option is a game camera most work on motion but some work on a timed setting . here is a link to one of the time lapse videos that we shot with a go pro 2. good luck with what ever you choose.

 

[Kev442]

I just dropped by about every 2-3 days and took a couple pics. There are always several day dead times while concrete is setting up, etc. So a few pics every 2-3 days worked out fine for me. The only thing I missed that would have been cool, was the crane swinging the trusses in place.

 

[Coloshaver]

With little action on some days, I just mounted my regular camera on a tripod, put the tripod in a very repeatable place and took pictures as the action occurred - i.e. pouring the slab, raising the walls, lifting the trusses, etc. I have about 100 "time lapse" pics. $0

 

[Pluribus]

Another thread caused me to end up at the following video. The narrator does a good job of covering the features as well as pros and cons of these two cameras. (Brinno TLC-200 and Recolo)

 

[bygasper]

Plotwatcher...wildlife food plot watching camera.

 

[Trey T]

If you go with GoPro, which is the best way, go with the Hero3. Get a battery BacPack or the skeleton for USB power and hook it up to a 18V Milwaukee XC battery Power Source.

With Hero3, right out of the box, you can monitor and control the GoPro from your Android or iPhone from far away.

Hero3 is $200bucks.

 

[ErVikingo]

... and I can stick it in the race car when I'm done with the construction.

The battery life is my great concern as I will not be stopping by the construction site daily and I plan to have it mounted on a pole.

Hum... solar charger???

 

[antinym]

If you have an old smartphone, or a laptop, there's plenty of cam software out there. Solar charger and a smartphone might work well for you.

 

[flytosail]

Plotwatcher...wildlife food plot watching camera.

Get the Plotwatcher Pro. Much better battery life and you can set the record times.

 

[gatchel]

... and I can stick it in the race car when I'm done with the construction.

The battery life is my great concern as I will not be stopping by the construction site daily and I plan to have it mounted on a pole.

Hum... solar charger???

You can always make something work based on the load, storage battery size and solar panel size. Or, get two batteries of a decent size and rotate them out every time you go to the site. Use one while charging the other in a nice warm battery friendly environment.

 

[Chris705]

I have this simple weatherproof time lapse camera that seems to have a good amount of adjustment on how often photos are taken....it is a fixed length lens so it is important to locate to maximize the field of view. I will admit it took Wingscapes 3 mailings to get me a camera that worked....seems they had some manufacturing problems with their ciritry but eventually got it working. Battery life seems good as this unit does not have a flash. For $100 it could be a nifty inexpensive way to caputure your build. It does have a small internal memory and an additional SD card slot....

http://www.wingscapes.com/timelapse-cameras/timelapsecam8

 

[ErVikingo]

Great, thanks!