Mailbox Jacked, Camera Disguise Questions

[Mainsail]

Christmas morning I was up at 5am, as always look out the front bedroom window and make sure the HMMWV is still there, general look around, etc... and see a red light way out at the gang mailbox. Not unusual, there are seven houses that use the box. What caught my eye was that it looked like the big door on the road-side of the box was open, the one the USPS worker uses to load all the boxes, not one of the small doors on the sidewalk side that we pull our mail out from.

Called the cops but they never caught the guy, who pried open numerous gang boxes in the neighborhood. None of my cameras caught the action, the box is just too far away from my house.

So I have several ideas for disguising a bullet camera and using one of the open high-power ports on the NVR to give me coverage. I will likely not be using the camera's on-board IR lights due to reflection issues inside whatever disguising choice I make, but I don't want to block any part of the camera that detects motion.

How is motion detected?

Other thoughts?

House in green, mailbox in red, camera location at the end of the yellow arrow.

 

[Mainsail]

Current disguise ideas are:

Birdhouse in the tree
Pile of rocks on the ground

 

[Sybertiger]

I don't disguise myself but understand why some do. Peeps seeing my cams are a part of the deterrent. I just like to make it so it's not terribly invasive looking. But, a fake rock or one in a tree camouflaged might work for you.

 

[TonyR]

FWIW, in Google Maps instead of having to blur or blank out your house number and/or street names you can hide those as follows:

• At lower left go to "Layers"
• Select "Satellite" view
• Click on "More"
• At bottom, un-check "Labels"

 

[ktiz81]

I don't disguise myself but understand why some do. Peeps seeing my cams are a part of the deterrent. I just like to make it so it's not terribly invasive looking. But, a fake rock or one in a tree camouflaged might work for you.

I’m new to this game, but I am kinda leaning this way. I do live on a larger lot more set back from the road, so I don’t have to worry as much about my neighbors feeling like my cameras are spying on them, but I do understand why some people disguise, for me I want people to see them.

However I will eventually put a LPR camera in, and that will have to be closer to the road (or near my mailbox) and my intention will be to disguise that one more so that the neighbors don’t think I’m COMPLETELY nuts.

 

[tangent]

The shrubbery between the house and mailbox would make it hard to mount the camera on the house.

They sell a variety of fake rocks. Birdhouses could also work.

Unfortunately copies of the keys to the post office side of mailboxes are in circulation, USPS is in the process of replacing their locks (slowly)

 

[TRLcam]

I made a utility pedestal out of a piece of PVC pipe and installed a camera in that.

Mailbox Camera

A few months ago I was taking out the trash and while walking down the driveway I noticed a car stopping at our mailbox, opening it and driving away. It was dark so I know it was not the rural mail carrier. We live in a rural area and have had occasions of missing mail in the past. We don't have...

ipcamtalk.com

 

[Mainsail]

Thanks all!

I will come up with something, but what I really need to understand is how the motion sensing works. I don't want the disguise to obscure any sensor.

This is the camera mounted on the house. the red arrow is the mailbox, the green circle is roughly where I'll put the camera.

 

[bigredfish]

Two different kinds of detection.

Old fashioned Motion Detection,- picks up leaves, bugs, tree limbs anything that moves. You're not likely going to want to use that
AI- Dahua calls it IVS. You set trip wires/Intrusion zones and other AI features. Far less susceptible to false alerts. It will for the most part limit detection to humans or vehicles or both.

Either way, you're going to want a relatively unrestricted view of the target zone. So yeah no leaves or branches right in front of the lens.

 

[fenderman]

What is your ultimate goal? Are you going to bother looking at every alert that comes from that box and confirm its a resident? Otherwise, what's the point, the plates will be obscured or stolen...you might want some type of zwave like sensor that triggers when your box is opened...

 

[The Automation Guy]

I'm not opposed to disguising your cameras. I actually have a PTZ camera that I have covered with camo tape because the white frame stuck out like a sore thumb and while the camera is mounted in plain sight, I didn't want to draw unnecessary attention to it (especially as large as it is). Just keep in mind that as soon as it gets dark and the IR emitter turns on, it is no longer disguised/hidden. So you'll either need to use color only cameras, use external IR emitters, or just live with the fact that your cameras aren't as hidden as you might think.

 

[Sybertiger]

I like that video that @bigredfish posted of the ladies going for a walk and noticing his PTZ. They took it in stride and had fun with it. Probably had just come back from happy hour...LOL! I think you are more likely to get a negative reaction from people rather than a positive one. They might not know it's autotracking and think you are sitting in your basement following them with the PTZ. I have a PTZ that's big and white but mine in mounted on the back corner of the house so likely most people don't even know it's there.

 

[bigredfish]

But its worth it to get this reaction

 

[Mainsail]

I have visible cameras on the house. I won't hang cameras in the trees - don't want to be "that guy..."

Any ideas about how the motion detection works?

 

[bigredfish]

Badly mostly...

Plain Motion detection is a simple changing of contrast in pixels on a grid at a determined intensity and percentage of an area.

IVS/AI introduces programmed logic and some learning in being able to recognize and categorize objects as well as direction and speed

 

[tigerwillow1]

I won't hang cameras in the trees - don't want to be "that guy..."

Having 7 cameras mounted on trees, I'm curious what kind of guy that makes me?

 

[Parley]

I have visible cameras on the house. I won't hang cameras in the trees - don't want to be "that guy..."

Any ideas about how the motion detection works?

I have 4 cameras in a tree. Two for general observation and two for license plate gathering. I have them covered in camouflage tape to help make them blend in.

 

[TonyR]

I guess @tigerwillow1 and @Parley are..."those guys".
I've only got 1 in a tree.....at the moment.

 

[wittaj]

What kinda guy is one with bush cams

 

[Parley]

Here is my infamous pine tree on the right with four IP cameras. Two are shown in this photo taken by another camera.