I'm looking for an IP Cam with 940nm

Murphy625

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Hi guys,
I'm trying to find an outdoor IP Camera with 940nm leds that can't be seen.

I'd prefer a bullet style camera, don't need anything super fancy, but would like a 2mp or 4mp unit were the leds can not be seen with a human eye.

Bought a Dahua for a friend and it works good but you can see the lights.

Thanks,
 

mat200

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Hi @Murphy625

Why not look for cameras which you can keep in color mode around the clock ( provided enough ambient light )?

see the Dahua OEM starlight and starlight+ models.

Note - very few cameras have IR leds at 940nm as those are less effective than 850nm. You can find a camera which you can turn off the IR leds and get an external IR illuminator in 940nm
 

Murphy625

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I'm out in the countryside and ambient light out here is almost non-existent. On a dark cloudy night, you can't see your own hand in front of your face.

Looks like a normal camera and turning off the IR leds is the answer.

anyone know of a 940nm illumination product that runs off solar?
 

nbstl68

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I have read for 940 you may need cameras with special ial lense as not all cameras can see or at least not effectively make use of 940. Just what I have read, don't take it as fact though I'd hate to see you buy a good camera that did not work with 940.
 

fergenheimer

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A while back, I bought a 940nm flood light to augment my cameras. The lights were invisible to me and made no difference to the camera. I thought they were defective until I pointed the flood light directly at the camera and sure enough, they were illuminated. I don't know what you would have to change to make it work but I gave up on the idea. Trailcams work on 940nm so maybe look into them.
 

Fastb

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If the cam was designed for near Ir (eg: 850nm), then using a far Ir (940nm) illuminator may not get through the IR filter built into the camera.
ie: a cam designed to let through the 850 nm illumination provided by the cam's Ir LEDs may not let through the 940nm from an auxilary illuminator.
This topic was covered in depth here: IR Cut Filters - please help a quasi newbie

Good luck,
Fastb
 

Murphy625

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I bought a couple of Dahua cameras IPC-HFW4300S. Decent unit? Is it sensitive to 940nm?

The property my house is on is big enough to land an airplane.. While I don't need to watch all of it, I do want to watch the 5 or 10 acres around my home. I don't need great detail, just enough to see if a person or an animal is moving around.
With that in mind, my idea was to build some solar power IR Light towers I could set out several hundred feet away that would illuminate an area for a camera (mounted on the house) to be able to see. So the camera might be 600 feet away, but there would be artificial light further out from it.
 

mat200

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I bought a couple of Dahua cameras IPC-HFW4300S. Decent unit? Is it sensitive to 940nm?

The property my house is on is big enough to land an airplane.. While I don't need to watch all of it, I do want to watch the 5 or 10 acres around my home. I don't need great detail, just enough to see if a person or an animal is moving around.
With that in mind, my idea was to build some solar power IR Light towers I could set out several hundred feet away that would illuminate an area for a camera (mounted on the house) to be able to see. So the camera might be 600 feet away, but there would be artificial light further out from it.
Hi @Murphy625

iirc those are older models, I'd suggest picking up one of the newer Dahua OEM starlight / starlight+ models along with a small PoE switch for your setup and playing around with it to see about getting a good comparison and contrast.
 

Fastb

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murphy625,

Mat200's advice is spot on. Get a good low-light cam.

A solar powered IR solution is a small project, involving choices.
For the Ir illuminator, check this Ir Cannon. It looks great for your application:

For solar, lots of info on ipcamtalk. Here's an example. You can search further.

Good luck!
Fastb
 

Murphy625

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Thanks for the advice everyone! Going to start with the older models and once set up, I'll move to something better for larger areas.
 

mat200

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Thanks for the advice everyone! Going to start with the older models and once set up, I'll move to something better for larger areas.
Hi @Murphy625

Do feel free to post examples once you get newer cameras for a comparison and contrast images.

Remember to see the various notes here on using a "drop" of di-electric gel in the RJ45 boots and coax seal / silicone stretch tape...
 
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