funkybunch
Getting the hang of it
I've been playing with setting for hours and I can barely make out the vehicle, never mind the license plate. Any recommended settings for a 2MP starlight? 
New Dahua 2231T - Best starlight settings?
- Thread starter funkybunch
- Start date
bigredfish
Known around here
You're not going to get a license plate in this lifetime with that camera at that angle.
Some things to try to improve the image without knowing your settings.
1- Turn down DNR below 50
2- Adjust Exposure to 1/60 for starters
3- Set bitrate to 8192 FPS to 30 (many will tell you 15 is enough, maybe so but why not?)
4- Turn off WDR if its on
5- Make sure IR is set to Auto
Some things to try to improve the image without knowing your settings.
1- Turn down DNR below 50
2- Adjust Exposure to 1/60 for starters
3- Set bitrate to 8192 FPS to 30 (many will tell you 15 is enough, maybe so but why not?)
4- Turn off WDR if its on
5- Make sure IR is set to Auto
funkybunch
Getting the hang of it
hey fish 
i got one during the day but that doesnt count i'll change the settings and post a follow-up photo.
i got one during the day but that doesnt count i'll change the settings and post a follow-up photo.
funkybunch
Getting the hang of it
bigredfish
Known around here
You may get one occasionally in the daytime, with a very slow car, at the right time of day, but thats what, a 65-70 degree angle? At 50ft? Its gonna be mostly luck
That trail you see is likely too much DNR
That trail you see is likely too much DNR
bigredfish
Known around here
1- Yes
2- Yes
3- H 264, CBR
4- NO Backlight - you could try some HLC but thats it and Id get the image better before messing with it
5- Further than I thought. Yes IR reflecting off the soffit will mess upo your night image
2- Yes
3- H 264, CBR
4- NO Backlight - you could try some HLC but thats it and Id get the image better before messing with it
5- Further than I thought. Yes IR reflecting off the soffit will mess upo your night image
funkybunch
Getting the hang of it
wow ok i had it on h265, thought it was better. i'll tinker some more. i'm learning that a junction box is beneficial that it spaces the camera an extra 1.5 inches and there's less chance of the lens seeing the soffit, facia, etc. i had the imago looking like daytime in color but motion including myself was a smear, it looked like a ghost moving.
bigredfish
Known around here
Worry about 265 once you get a good image.
funkybunch
Getting the hang of it
bigredfish
Known around here
Cool give it a shot
funkybunch
Getting the hang of it
what about smart codec, i-frame interval? shutter gain? looks like you can manually adjust the limits, like 1-100, currently it's at 1-50. white balance auto? looks like it only has an affect in color mode.
funkybunch
Getting the hang of it
i was thinking of the 5231-Z12 which i think has a 35mm lens, you think i'd be successful using that cam as a dedicated LPR cam? the idea is to get plates that stop at the mailbox, pass by the driveway or pull into the drive. i'd love to have it hooked up to law enforcement so that it uploads all the scanned plates, and lets me know when there's a stolen hit or something
bigredfish
Known around here
No smart codec
Leave gain at 1-50 for now
iframe match FPS
Leave gain at 1-50 for now
iframe match FPS
bigredfish
Known around here
i was thinking of the 5231-Z12 which i think has a 35mm lens, you think i'd be successful using that cam as a dedicated LPR cam? the idea is to get plates that stop at the mailbox, pass by the driveway or pull into the drive. i'd love to have it hooked up to law enforcement so that it uploads all the scanned plates, and lets me know when there's a stolen hit or something
A horrible angle, great camera the Z12. You need to rethink placement for LPR
funkybunch
Getting the hang of it
damn ok, well. i have another cat6 line to the corner of the house, right above the garage door, it will be about 50 ft from the end of the driveway and 10 feet lower. i've poked in the lpr section, it's hit or miss. hoping i can achieve it with a non lpr cam if that makes sense. still waiting for a car to go by
funkybunch
Getting the hang of it
right now the $50 cam from B&H is looking better than the 2231T from andy, i'm hoping it's just settings i need to tinker with. then again i have the exposure cranked up and there's a full moon. here's the fire pit area as seen by the $50 cam. no IR, just moonlight. needs a lot of tweaking. 
here's the fire pit area as seen by the $50 cam. no IR, just moonlight. needs a lot of tweaking.
funkybunch
Getting the hang of it
you'll love this one:
bigredfish
Known around here
Is that cropped? Are you using digital zoom?
Can you post a full size image? Are you not using IR? You don’t have enough light to not be using IR..
Can you post a full size image? Are you not using IR? You don’t have enough light to not be using IR..
aristobrat
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To get the least blurry image of a license plate driving by at night, folks usually have to set the shutter speed to something incredibly fast, like 1/2000. This has the side effect of making everything else in the image so dark that all you usually see is the reflective plate and maybe some of the car's lights. Because these settings make the camera only useful for capturing license plates is one of the reasons why folks dedicate a camera just for LPR. In other words, they don't plan on capturing anything else useful with it at night.
See the example below (stealing this from a @bigredfish post). If a car wasn't there and a person was walking by instead, you wouldn't be able to see the person.
bigredfish
Known around here
I don’t think he has IR turned on in the images above. He’s a long way from LPR, I’m just trying to get to the point where the camera is working for regular use