ColorVU Video Settings?

[Jfd7000]

I currently have the below cameras but struggling to get the video settings right.

If I up the bitrate the footage becomes too laggy and really struggles with people in picture. I also thought I would get better face detail than I do? I will post some pictures and also the settings.

I have downloaded directly from the DVR and I still don’t see faces at night as I get motion blur?

Front of house (4MP ColorVu)
DS-2CD2347G1-LU 2.8mm

Back of house (5MP Colorvu)
DS-2CE72HFT-f28

DVR
iDS-7204HUHI-K1 / 4S(B)

Is this the best I can get?

 

[Dan]

Hi @Jfd7000

Can you share screenshots of the image settings for both these cameras?

By default most of the ColorVu models come out of the box with their exposure time/shutter speed set to 1/12, this is slower than most IP cameras because the slower/longer exposure time allows more light into the camera so you get brighter night images. The downside of this is that the long exposures cause motion blur in moving objects like people and cars which can distort small details like faces, if they are set to 1/12 (or similar) we would recommend raising the exposure to 1/25 (1/30 if you are using 60Hz).

You can potentially speed the exposure up beyond this but the shorter the exposure time the darker the image becomes, so it is a bit of a balancing act to find the sweet spot for your conditions.

 

[Jfd7000]

Thanks Dan yes I will post some more pictures and settings. I’ve reset the 4MP settings because I had changed so much. The shutter speed was 1/12 so I have changed this now to 1/25. At the moment the backlight settings are off. To get a lighter image at night what do I need to experiment with the BLC, WDR and HLC settings? I noticed when I reset the camera it took the other settings back to h.264 so I have changed this to h.265.

 

[Dan]

WDR & HLC will probably be the ones to have the most effect on your scene because they balance and reduce the brightest parts of the scene, so in your case, that would be the reflection off the road and the streetlight lamps visible in the cameras FoV.

I can't really give you exact settings to try because settings will vary for every scene and it is just trial and error to find the settings that give you the best results.

 

[Jfd7000]

WDR & HLC will probably be the ones to have the most effect on your scene because they balance and reduce the brightest parts of the scene, so in your case, that would be the reflection off the road and the streetlight lamps visible in the cameras FoV.

I can't really give you exact settings to try because settings will vary for every scene and it is just trial and error to find the settings that give you the best results.

Ok thanks Dan so the picture seems ok but when people are walking past or cars going past on playback they freeze and kind of stutter. Will this be the bitrate? Ive turned this down now.

 

[Jfd7000]

Hi Dan, I have reset the 4MP Colorvu camera to default and experimented with some settings. I found if I increase the bitrate settings when cars or people go past they freeze for a second or two so quite jittery. I have attached the current settings and an example picture. I will post a daytime pic when it’s light. Thanks for your help.

 

[Jfd7000]

This is a daytime shot. Is that ok or too bright?

 

[David]

@Jfd7000 i have the same model of colorvu and am trying to optimise my picture as well. For your front cam try BLC top or bottom, after making the change wait for the image to adjust itself. My playback is problem free, I’ll post my video settings tomorrow.

 

[Jfd7000]

Thanks appreciate that.

 

[David]

Thanks appreciate that.

@Jfd7000
Camera DS-2CD2347G1-LU
Firmware V5.6.5 build 200316

I use IVMS-4200 (Windows) for remote configuration. Image settings are changed at the camera interface.

Always check live view and playback using the NVR and local monitor. WiFi connected devices can give live view and playback problems.

These screen shots are settings of my LED light, video and image night schedule and give me excellent body face pictures (4m) and car reg plates (8m headlights on).

Image day settings are HLC off and exposure 1/250.

The brighter screenshot is HLC off.

 

[Jfd7000]

Great thank you. What does the Image day settings are HLC off and exposure 1/250 mean sorry? Your screenshot says 1/100 and HLC is on?

 

[David]

Great thank you. What does the Image day settings are HLC off and exposure 1/250 mean sorry? Your screenshot says 1/100 and HLC is on?

The screenshot is for the night setting. there is a schedule to change from day to night 7am to 6pm

 

[Jfd7000]

The screenshot is for the night setting. there is a schedule to change from day to night 7am to 6pm

So night is selected but the time is from 7am to 6pm?

 

[David]

So night is selected but the time is from 7am to 6pm?

Sorry for the confusion. Night timing is 18:00 to 07:00 and Day times 07:00 to 18:00. When you click on the Day or Night buttons you can adjust the image settings for each. During the night timings HLC is on and exposure increased, day time HLC is off and exposure reduced.

 

[Jfd7000]

Great thank you David. I noticed you have h.265+ enabled. How has that been for you?

 

[David]

Great thank you David. I noticed you have h.265+ enabled. How has that been for you?

5 of my cameras use h265+ and I’ve never noticed any problems.

if you use image day and night schedules you my have to adjust the schedule times as the daylight gets longer/shorter.

 

[Dave Howard]

@David your exposure 1/100 with ColorVu. Are you getting pixelation/blurring of people walking and are you using the white supplemental lighting?
I ask as having put 2x 2047G2 up over weekend, then exposure of 1/50-1/200 all show pixelation or blurring of even people walking at night at 10+mtrs away.
I don't have supplemental light on as using natural star/moon light. My aim is to use supplemental for region detection inside the 10mts (which works great).
I've tried number of settings including BLC/WDR as well as changing exposure, but clearly the higher the exposure the darker the scene with no white LED on.
I'm thinking of sending back and swapping for 'normal' G2 as also put up a 2385G2 turret in differnt location (only star/moon) and IR on that is excellent.
Thanks in advance.

 

[David]

@David your exposure 1/100 with ColorVu. Are you getting pixelation/blurring of people walking and are you using the white supplemental lighting?
I ask as having put 2x 2047G2 up over weekend, then exposure of 1/50-1/200 all show pixelation or blurring of even people walking at night at 10+mtrs away.
I don't have supplemental light on as using natural star/moon light. My aim is to use supplemental for region detection inside the 10mts (which works great).
I've tried number of settings including BLC/WDR as well as changing exposure, but clearly the higher the exposure the darker the scene with no white LED on.
I'm thinking of sending back and swapping for 'normal' G2 as also put up a 2385G2 turret in differnt location (only star/moon) and IR on that is excellent.
Thanks in advance.

@Dave Howard I use the LED lights at 50% with night exposure 1/150, HLC is enabled. I also have nearby streetlights that light the scene.

Night playback is excellent and can clearly see faces and read car reg plates at 5m (HLC is perfect for car headlights).

 

[JB1970]

Having noise reduction too high can cause some motion blur due to the processing. I recall one version of Hikvision firmware was released with the default at 100. Until I adjusted it I could do star jumps in front of the camera - it kind of looked like a snow angel on screen.