Direct Sunlight On Sensor?

[Illya_Kareoke]

Hi, quick question. Back in the old days it was not a good idea to point video cameras into direct sunlight. Is this still true with our IP cams? I have my backyard (bay window) cam in a spot that shades it from the morning sun, it would be much more useful and my wife would be much happier if it were closer to the window.
Thanks.
PS, I know my brightness is out of adjustment. I'm trying to set it up for nights with an external IR emitter.
~

 

[Illya_Kareoke]

I went back to my old setup rotated with D to D off.

 

[Del Boy]

Pointing into direct sunlight is always going to be troublesome, even with BLC, although this can mitigate it a bit.

It would be better if you got a proper IP camera and put it outside. I suspect you have a cheap PTZ wireless indoor thingy by the looks of your pics.

If you want something small and discreet and if your budget stretches then get something like the Hikvision DS-2CD2542FWD-I check out the quality in the video compared to yours. It also has WDR and BLC so will be better in direct sunlight. If your budget is smaller than the Dahua 4421R which you can get on Aliexpress for cheap. Hard to beat that at $78 !!!

 

[Illya_Kareoke]

Anyway, my question was about direct sunlight into the sensor. I noticed some captures where you can see the sun and it looks fine. Is that software or a better camera or is it probably damaging the sensor?

 

[fenderman]

Anyway, my question was about direct sunlight into the sensor. I noticed some captures where you can see the sun and it looks fine. Is that software or a better camera or is it probably damaging the sensor?

It wont damage the sensor..the camera properly adjust for the sun thats why its not all washed out unlike the cheap foscams..

 

[Del Boy]

I didn't realise you were asking that. No it won't damage the sensor, especially being a glass window! It's still generally a bad idea to point it directly at the sun as your image will be compromised.

 

[wxman]

This question in the past has almost always led to mixed results. Many professional photogs will cringe when you mention pointing into direct sunlight and share horror stories of damaged sensors. Many of the owner's manuals for cameras also clearly state "do not point directly at the sun as it may damage the sensor" under their "cautions/warnings" section.....That being said, I know of outdoor cameras that have been pointed directly into the sunrise/sunset each day for years and I've not noticed any degradation in image quality that would suggest any notable sensor damage.

The best I can make out of the situation is that it's remotely possible to damage a sensor in prolonged direct sunlight, but it tends to be fairly an unlikely/rare occurrence.

 

[frank10]

I think "direct sunlight" it's a bit generic: "sunrise/sunset" could be fine, but at noon or similar it could damage it for it's much stronger light.

 

[Michelin Man]

It's possible to damage the sensor by direct sunlight exposure (that is into the sun), especially for a extended period of time. Then again anythings possible.

The warnings about not pointing the camera into the sun is just to educate what I like the call the dumb c**ts. You can definitely damage a sensor by pointing it at the sun, especially with a telephoto lens it'd be like a magnifying glass on ants.

However, a situation like this is more so of having the sun within the frame which is totally different to a DC, who is zoomed directly into the sun. So I think you'd be fine, apart from exposure issues and whatnot.

Another good example is dash cams, they spend a lot of time facing direct sunlight, and also get 'warm' if not hot when they're baking away inside the car. They seem to be fine and go on for years like this. Usually the batteries die first due to the heat.