Image Properties

Resolution is the dimensional size of the image, measured in pixels, horizontal by vertical. The higher the resolution, the larger the picture appears in your browser and the larger the filesize.

The clearest image of most digital cameras, including the NetCamSC, is 1/4 the full sensor resolution.

This represents the amount of color in the image. The higher the value, the more saturated the color.

This represents the amount of haze subtraction. The higher the value, the more haze is subtracted and the image results in higher contrast. Using the Auto Haze function is recommended over setting the haze manually.

Haze subtraction is automatically determined by the camera. Enabling Auto Haze is recommended.

The JPEG Quality is a balance between lossy image compression and image quality. The higher the number, the less compression artifacts in the image, but the bigger the file size. A value higher than 90 is not recommended, as it greatly increases the filesize with very little noticeable difference in image quality.

When enabled, software sharpening is performed on the live image. For the best image quality, Sharpen should be enabled.

Enabling Auto Exposure causes the NetCamSC to automatically adjust the image exposure based on the overall brightness of the image. The following functions are only implemented when Auto Exposure is enabled.

Brightness - The higher the number, the brighter the picture. This is the target for the auto exposure logic.

Sync - Fluorescent lighting refreshes at 60Hz or 50Hz, depending on what country you live in. This may interfere with the camera's exposure. Set the sync to the appropriate value for your area (example: U.S. is 60Hz). If you are pointing the camera outdoors or do not use fluorescent lighting, you may turn this option off.

Enabling Manual Exposure exposes images at the value placed in the Exposure field. Keep in mind that using manual exposure is not advised for outdoor imaging, since the light conditions are constantly changing. You may opt to use manual exposure indoors if your lighting conditions do not change. Here are some sample exposure values and their fractional and decimal equivalents:

The exposure grid determines what areas of the image are used to adjust the exposure. For example, when pointing outdoors, you may want to enable only sky portion of the image, to prevent overexposing the sky.

Auto Iris - Only enable this option if a DC Auto Iris lens is connected into the camera. If your camera does have a DC auto iris lens connected, you must enable this option when the camera is pointing outdoors.

Back Light - BLC, or backlight compensation, adjusts the picture in situations where a bright light source, such as window, is causing the image to be improperly exposed.

Low Light Presets - There are a lot of controls in determining how the camera behaves in low light conditions. To simplify low light use, a number of Low Light Presets are available to instantly configure the camera as required. The presets automatically set all the other controls. If you'd like to manually set the advanced controls select "Manual" in the Low Light Presets dropdown.

Exposure Limit - The camera will not expose the image sensor above this value. The default is 32767, about 1.5 seconds). If you see a lot of pixel noise on your image at night, consider limiting this value (other options related to image noise are AGC and Low Light).

Allow Extended Exposures - In darker lighting conditions, a longer exposure produces a brighter image. A longer exposure also produces an image where objects in motion may appear blurry. If your application requires the best possible image quality and motion blur is not a concern, enable Allow Extended Exposures and set the Exposure Limit to a high value (up to 32767). If your application requires capturing images of people or objects in motion, disable Allow Extended Exposures.

Automatic Gain Control (AGC) - The picture is digitally amplified in low light conditions or in situations where the exposure is limited to reduce motion blur. Enabling AGC may introduce image noise.

AGC Limit - The higher the limit, the more digital amplification occurs (assuming it's necessary). If you want to limit the digital gain to reduce noise on the image, reduce this value.

Pixel Rep - Groups pixels together for better light sensitivity, at the expense of image clarity.

DNR (Digital Noise Reduction) - Reduces image noise.

Image Speed - Determines when low light gain is initiated in relation to the exposure.

Low Light - In low light conditions, the analog low light mode of the image sensor is enabled. Enabling Low Light may introduce image noise.

Alternate YUV - Uses non-standard algorithms to process color, allowing for improved light sensitivity.

To lower the frame rate (and bandwidth), increase this value. A value of 0 means full frame rate, a value of 1 means skip every other frame, a value of 2 means skip every two frames, etc.

The LED indication on the front of the camera can be configured in a number of different ways:

• Off - LED is always off. Useful when you do not want the camera to be seen at night or if you are experiencing a visible reflection in a window.
• Green-Yellow Active - LED remains green until image activity occurs (viewing, recording, FTP, etc.), in which case it momentarily blinks yellow.
• Green-Red Motion - LED remains green until internal video motion is detected, in which case it momentarily blinks red.
• Green-Red-Yellow - A combination of Green-Yellow Active and Green-Red-Motion.

Controls video out BNC port on the back of the camera. It can be turned off (no video out) or set to NTSC or PAL. When set to NTSC or PAL, the camera's video can be viewed with any standard video monitor. Note: the video resolution will be scaled up or down to the maximum NTSC or PAL resolution.

This determines how the mechanical IR (infrared) filter behaves (available only on IR models).

• Off - The camera will only see visible light.
• On - The camera will see both visible and infrared light.
• Auto - The camera will automatically determine what position the IR filter should be in (IR is normally only needed in low light situations). If you plan on using the IR mode (on or auto), an IR illuminator is recommended.

Auto Color Balance automatically adjusts the color balance of the image based on the content of the image. In most situations, you will want Auto Color Balance enabled.

Auto Color Balance Type - There are four different color balance types.

Average - An average of the entire image is used to determine color balance.
Bright - Only bright areas are used to determine color balance.
Spot - Only spot areas are used to determine color balance.
Automatic - The camera automatically selects the best method to use.

R - This represents the amount of red skew in the image.
G - This represents the amount of green skew in the image.
B - This represents the amount of blue skew in the image.

The recommended setting is Auto Color Balance with Average selected.

Manual Color Balance uses the manually configurable Red, Green and Blue values to set the color balance of the image.

R - This represents the amount of red in the image.
G - This represents the amount of green in the image.
B - This represents the amount of blue in the image.

You may want use manual color balance if you have a fixed lighting situation.