Camera on great horned owl nest

[Terri Underhill]

Seriously I am not knocking dahua as a product. And I know amazon has a gazillion bogus reviews. But it is easy enough to tell them apart from the others. When a product on amazon has 5 stars you can still look and see what other stars are there. And I know bogus people will add 5 stars to get the positive numbers but I can still see the negative feedback as well even though there are bogus 5 stars. And if there is a bogus one star it is always obvious when they write very little and in broken english. I can always ask a question and receive helpful answers from people who purchased the product. The dahua cameras here are not labeled as dahua. Does dahua warranty the unlabeled cameras? I did not see any cameras sold by dahua that weren't labeled as dahua on Amazon. Anyone can sell a fake and call it what they want. It's like everything else, if you want to ensure you are getting the real deal just buy it from the manufacturer at full retail price. Again I am sorry if I offended anyone here. I have nothing against dahua.

 

[tangent]

It is unheard of to have 500 reviews with 95% being 5 stars. There are too many people that don't know what they are doing with installation and give bad reviews also software problems cause cameras to get bad reviews. I never said I doubt that Dahua is a good product. But there is no product on amazon that has 95% five stars with zero 3,2 or 1 stars. Even with all the bogus ones. I have not said anything that can't be checked out for yourself here and on amazon. You are way to defensive.I'm sorry if I offended you.

You've got some great subjects in those little owlets, hopefully you're able to get some good footage. Unfortunately I doubt the "Sibell" camera you selected will be capable of that.

I'm a bit confused why you'd reject Dahua (one of the largest mfgs of security cameras in the world) and choose a no-name brand that has very few reviews and a questionable reputation on Amazon. I'm not offended and my intention is not to "defend dahua" there are other respectable camera brands. However, if you're going to ignore the advice you're given people won't waste their time offering advice.

Dahua does warranty their cameras, but US based warranty support is only available if you purchased from an authorized distributor in the US like B&H. They sell a much more limited portfolio of products and they cost much more. EMPIRETECANDY does warranty cameras, but you have to pay return shipping. Good luck with any kind of warranty from "Sibell".

 

[Terri Underhill]

I will be the first to admit if I made a mistake. You will be the first to say I told you so. We'll see. And you answered my question, dahua doesn't warranty products not labeled as dahua. I learned a long time ago that peoples opinions are not the gospel. I listened to many opinions about this matter and the final decision must be mine. In the end I have to go by what works for me weighing the pros and cons. If there had been a dahua that was on amazon with three days shipping with the specs I needed,I'd gone with it. I really wanted a dahua and I figure dahua is better than what I'm getting but my owlets are making my final decision on getting my camera sooner than later. These little owls are growing fast and I've already missed 2 weeks of their life. Every day that I can't enjoy them is a bit overwhelming to think about. You would have to understand my love for nature, especially owls to know how excited I am to have these little guys nesting in my yard. I put a whisky barrel in a tree hoping they would come and to me this is a miracle that I want to enjoy as soon as I can. I am beyond thrilled to have them here!

Here's what I need in a camera that I could not get from dahua by friday: Under 300.00, weather proof, PTZ, DDNS to add to my web page, must be a bullet camera, at least 9-22MM Varifocal 10X Optical Lens, at least 4MP ( 2592 × 1520 ) H.265 full real time coding, Support CVBS video output and two-way audio, run directly to router, My camera has a 2 YEAR WARRANTY! US Based All American TECH-Support and Website with full video tutorials. Business hour: Mon – Fri, 9:00 am – 8:00pm eastern M-F.
Once I get my camera up I will add a link here so you can see why I can't wait to see my owlets It will be worth every penny to share these owls with the world on my web page. I pray this camera will work well for me. And I'm sorry I couldn't find a dahua soon enough. I do appreciate your knowledge. blessings, okiebirdnerd

 

[Terri Underhill]

I just received my camera. I haven't made any adjustments yet. My girlfriend that did all the configuring said she really likes the interface.I don't know how to do anything yet but I did take a screen capture of reg view and zoomed to the clock which is 36 feet away. It has a lot more zoom than in the screen capture. I need better light in my house to zoom farther. It is way too windy to be climbing on a ladder to install the camera. But I'll add a link once I have it set on my owls. So far so good. We'll see if I'll have enough zoom to see the owlets clearly Thanks again for all your help!

 

[Terri Underhill]

I got my camera up but I had to wait until I could get some help to finish the job. I wasn't strong enough to drill all the way through the brick with my small cordless drill. I couldn't put it up as high as I hoped either. The ladder was too far away trying to lean it up against the brick And my brother-in-law ended up needing to add an outlet in the attic. Tomorrow I need to adjust the camera angle. I didn't want the momma owl to be off the nest any longer since it was getting dark and I knew she wanted to feed her young. I didn't have the camera zoomed very much when she flew in with a mouse. I saw a owlet's head pop up and I watched momma feed before I remembered to do a screen capture.. I think I'll have plenty of zoom. I need to read up on the software program settings. Anyway, once we don't have owls nesting, the camera will monitor or driveway entrance. Thanks again for all your help. I am very grateful. I'll add a link here once my friend has time to mess with adding my owlcam to my webpage
blessings, okiebirdnerd

 

[Terri Underhill]

My friend got my camera on line so I can see my owlets. So far I have been able to see one pop up. I haven't been able to adjust the camera angle since the momma owl has been on the nest so much and I also need someone here watching my live view to tell me when I have adjusted it enough that the image is straight so I won't need to climb on the roof a gazillion times
I know you all said you wouldn't help me if I didn't buy the camera you suggested but I will ask a few questions here anyway since I know nothing about security cam stuff. Can you suggest any streaming companies? ustream use to be free but was bought by ibm and charged 99$ a month now. The other thing is why can't people watching not see my camera when I have zoomed in? It is probably because the place that my camera is streaming from is free but I don't know and thought you might.. Anyway, thanks for your help! I attached a screen capture of one of the owlets poking his head up. He is so adorable <3 Here's the temp link to my owlcam : Owl Cam « Okie Bird Cam Blog
okiebirdnerd

 

[jon2]

My friend got my camera on line so I can see my owlets. So far I have been able to see one pop up. I haven't been able to adjust the camera angle since the momma owl has been on the nest so much and I also need someone here watching my live view to tell me when I have adjusted it enough that the image is straight so I won't need to climb on the roof a gazillion times
I know you all said you wouldn't help me if I didn't buy the camera you suggested but I will ask a few questions here anyway since I know nothing about security cam stuff. Can you suggest any streaming companies? ustream use to be free but was bought by ibm and charged 99$ a month now. The other thing is why can't people watching not see my camera when I have zoomed in? It is probably because the place that my camera is streaming from is free but I don't know and thought you might.. Anyway, thanks for your help! I attached a screen capture of one of the owlets poking his head up. He is so adorable <3 Here's the temp link to my owlcam : Owl Cam « Okie Bird Cam Blog
okiebirdnerd

hi Terri
well i for one like watching the owls i like birds also . so this is very interesting for me and i will be watching the progress of the owlets. as for the zoom issue i presume only you would have the rights to zoom on your computer anyone else would only have the viewing rights..as for adjusting the camera don't you have it on a phone app or ipad you could carry with you when you go on the roof . if not its only a quarter turn you need to adjust by ... while i was watching last night i saw a squirrel right next to the nest . the mother or father flew back to the nest i'm suprised it wasn't taken by the parents,,

 

[Terri Underhill]

Thanks for the reply Jon. I realise that people watching can't zoom. But I thought if I zoomed in with the camera program, that people watching would be able to see the owls closer. And as far as the angle goes, I assume since I took the shade off to hang the camera I didn't realize I had hung it upside down So I flipped it correctly within the program. So now would everything I do be backwards to what I think it is? I had to tape the shade on since the camera is quarter turned.
I had hoped someone here might know of a better place to stream the feed through.Maybe once my husband sees how many people are interested in watching the owls he won't mind me spending the money I am over the moon about my owlets! I can't tell if there are one or two more since they are too small to stick their heads up yet <3 Owl Cam « Okie Bird Cam Blog

 

[looney2ns]

Thanks for the reply Jon. I realise that people watching can't zoom. But I thought if I zoomed in with the camera program, that people watching would be able to see the owls closer. And as far as the angle goes, I assume since I took the shade off to hang the camera I didn't realize I had hung it upside down So I flipped it correctly within the program. So now would everything I do be backwards to what I think it is? I had to tape the shade on since the camera is quarter turned.
I had hoped someone here might know of a better place to stream the feed through.Maybe once my husband sees how many people are interested in watching the owls he won't mind me spending the money I am over the moon about my owlets! I can't tell if there are one or two more since they are too small to stick their heads up yet <3 Owl Cam « Okie Bird Cam Blog

You can use Youtube to stream for free. They have instructions on how to do so.
I would turn the camera right side up your next trip to the roof.
It "might" be more susceptible to water intrusion upside down.
If you have a smart phone, view your camera with it, when you are on the roof so you can aim it properly.

 

[Terri Underhill]

Thank you for the heads up on the camera angle. I'm more afraid of dropping my phone that I spent two times more on than my camera. My husband already thinks I have lost my mind. If I broke my phone he might actually push me off the roof The glare is pretty bad on my phone outside. I downloaded the app on my phone but I haven't tried using it yet. Yes YouTube was the first place I checked. I thought I read they don't allow 24/7 streaming...but I'll check again. I don't think any of the streaming programs allow audio streaming unless I pay. And I don't know how to tell if I have the kind of audio that needs a un-pre amplified mic or what. I have a mic in and a mic out. Since I'm not using my camera for surveillance my situation is different than most.Thank you for your help!
I hope you took a gander at my momma and owlet so you can see why I was in such a rush to get my camera up and running. Curiosity killed the cat and I was anxious to know what I was missing
So I have a stupid question. I have read on this forum about blue iris app. Is that something I might benefit from? I guess I could view my panasonic and foscam in it too that I have on my deer feeder. Would it help me do more as far as adjusting the zoom, brightness, darkness, sharpness ? If it is complicated I'm not interested in it. I don't use the alarms, events or email settings. All I pretty much need is to zoom and make some adjustments to the picture. Thanks again!

 

[jon2]

Hi Terri
why don't you send your hubby up on the roof while you are viewing safely on the ground lol.. the stream you are using seems ok to me . why change . i do know youTube does let you use audio but your camera would need either a installed mic or one you can attach to it. and also is the owl nest close enough to benefit from sound..as for setting the zoom and other camera adjustments you probably know more than me i have enough trouble with my own cameras.. but they is experts on here that may help you,,

 

[looney2ns]

Thank you for the heads up on the camera angle. I'm more afraid of dropping my phone that I spent two times more on than my camera. My husband already thinks I have lost my mind. If I broke my phone he might actually push me off the roof The glare is pretty bad on my phone outside. I downloaded the app on my phone but I haven't tried using it yet. Yes YouTube was the first place I checked. I thought I read they don't allow 24/7 streaming...but I'll check again. I don't think any of the streaming programs allow audio streaming unless I pay. And I don't know how to tell if I have the kind of audio that needs a un-pre amplified mic or what. I have a mic in and a mic out. Since I'm not using my camera for surveillance my situation is different than most.Thank you for your help!
I hope you took a gander at my momma and owlet so you can see why I was in such a rush to get my camera up and running. Curiosity killed the cat and I was anxious to know what I was missing
So I have a stupid question. I have read on this forum about blue iris app. Is that something I might benefit from? I guess I could view my panasonic and foscam in it too that I have on my deer feeder. Would it help me do more as far as adjusting the zoom, brightness, darkness, sharpness ? If it is complicated I'm not interested in it. I don't use the alarms, events or email settings. All I pretty much need is to zoom and make some adjustments to the picture. Thanks again!

Blue Iris is a program that runs on a PC that would record all your cameras for viewing later. It's $50. Blue Iris - Video Security Software
You would most likely need a Mic like this one. It has a Preamp built in. Bullet Mic Review | IP Cam Talk
You should be able to do all camera adjustments from within their own individual setup page, no need for BI for that.
Here is a Youtube 24/7 live feed, with audio.

 

[fenderman]

Thank you everyone for your help and suggestions. I can't wait a month to receive my camera. I am anxious to see my owlets. I hope I don't regret jumping the gun and ordering this.I found a camera on Amazon. I got it for 305.00 with my Discover card It will be here Friday.
Long Range Motorized VF License Plate 4 Megapixel 4mp IP Bullet Camera w/ 9-22MM Varifocal 10X Optical Lens 16x Digi and 328ft of Infrared and Adjustable Shutter Speed.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07B43HV2B/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_CNMMCb575K7CS
Thanks again for your time!
Okiebirdnerd

You got jacked... 1/3 lens 4mp camera for 305? not worth more than 100, if that.

 

[fenderman]

I did do hours of research over a week.I searched many other forums along with avsforum, amazon and google. There was only one bullet camera that wasn't 25 days to receive at aliexpress. I stated I needed it fast. I'm getting mine tomorrow and if I'm not pleased I can return it and it costs me nothing since I am a prime user. I never said there weren't positive reviews. It was the lack of anything else that was troublesome. It is unheard of to have 500 reviews with 95% being 5 stars. There are too many people that don't know what they are doing with installation and give bad reviews also software problems cause cameras to get bad reviews. I never said I doubt that Dahua is a good product. But there is no product on amazon that has 95% five stars with zero 3,2 or 1 stars. Even with all the bogus ones. I have not said anything that can't be checked out for yourself here and on amazon. You are way to defensive.I'm sorry if I offended you.

Andy ships with dhl shipping, 3 days from china. The folks here dont like seeing people like you getting ripped off, but if you are ok with paying 3x for junk thats your problem. Enjoy it. There companies operate under the motto, there is a sucker born every day, today, that was you.
It is unfortunate that in your hours of research you did not come across a better camera.

 

[Terri Underhill]

Andy ships with dhl shipping, 3 days from china. The folks here dont like seeing people like you getting ripped off, but if you are ok with paying 3x for junk thats your problem. Enjoy it. There companies operate under the motto, there is a sucker born every day, today, that was you.
It is unfortunate that in your hours of research you did not come across a better camera.

I can tell how you pride yourself for being crass and hurtful. You are so demeaning. My mother always said if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. Unfortunately I don't think you'd ever speak again. Since you know so much, why didn't you suggested a camera with the specifications I needed in my price range? I tend to believe what is written on the camera order page. When it says they guarantee delivery in 21-25 days ...it is what it is. Yes they have cameras that they show will ship faster but I wasn't looking for those cameras. You know nothing about the camera maker of the camera I purchased. It is a 9~22mm and I regret it doesn't have more zoom. The camera suggested to me in the beginning was a 2.7~13.5mm. A kind person suggested I probably would be happier with more zoom than that so I almost doubled it. If I didn't have to use a bullet camera I would have had more choices of cameras. I didn't want a camera the owls would perch on.

 

[Terri Underhill]

Blue Iris is a program that runs on a PC that would record all your cameras for viewing later. It's $50. Blue Iris - Video Security Software
You would most likely need a Mic like this one. It has a Preamp built in. Bullet Mic Review | IP Cam Talk
You should be able to do all camera adjustments from within their own individual setup page, no need for BI for that.
Here is a Youtube 24/7 live feed, with audio.

You have been very kind. Thank you for the info. The company I am streaming my video from charges 18.00 a month and 30.00 a month to include audio. So it probably isn't worth it. I need to read up more on using youtube. But I think they compress it. I don't think that is the correct term for it.
Thank you for explaining blue iris. I don't see any reason to record the video.

 

[tangent]

why didn't you suggested a camera with the specifications I needed in my price range?

Not to speak for fenderman, but I know I was disappointed when posted what you bought. There were good options in your budget, but apparently you felt like you couldn't wait for the advice you were seeking. P.S. the forum isn't real active in the middle of the night.

 

[Terri Underhill]

Not to speak for fenderman, but I know I was disappointed when posted what you bought. There were good options in your budget, but apparently you felt like you couldn't wait for the advice you were seeking. P.S. the forum isn't real active in the middle of the night.

My point was I never found a bullet camera at aliexpress that had at least 22mm zoom, 4mp, ddns, that didn't have to run through a nvr like I bought. I just checked again and there isn't a bullet camera on his web site. Hindsight is 20/20 and I actually needed more optical zoom than 22mm & 4 mp. I don't understand why some of you are hell bent that I should trust what YOU say ( that I'd receive camera in 3 to 5 days) and not trust aliexpress that says specifically I'd receive a camera in 25 days, guaranteed 35 days. I'd like to know why you all know more than the aliexpress? Seriously, I'd receive my camera between April 21st to May 1st. If aliexpress truly ships in 3 to 5 days from China, they should be proud to advertise and guarantee that fast on the order page. For a camera to arrive 3 to 5 days it would already be in the us. I said in the beginning I couldn't wait that long yet some of you are condemning me for my needs.
No joke, out of 3385 threads listed under Dahua alone from people asking for help or whatever and you guys feel the need to jump all over me. I have asked at least 5 times which dahua bullet camera has more than the camera I bought ( so I can admit I am wrong) and not one person gave me a dahua model number. I never even saw one bullet camera with what I needed at a higher price than mine. Some of you have literally nitpicked my every word and bashed me. You must get some kind of pleasure demeaning others.
I treat people the way I like to be treated, whether I know you or not. Thanks again to those of you that gave helpful advice.You all don't know me from Adam and I sincerely appreciate your knowledge in assisting me.

 

[tangent]

Ali express isn't a very trustworthy marketplace. I don't understand why you seek advice if you're determined to ignore it.

 

[bigredfish]

..... I have asked at least 5 times which dahua bullet camera has more than the camera I bought ( so I can admit I am wrong) and not one person gave me a dahua model number.....

HFW5231E-Z5E
or
HFW5231E-Z12E

Though the above cameras will be better, but if you're married to 4MP for some reason, this one
HFW5431E-Z5E