Time-Lapse Camera Package

Superseded by the New Cyclapse Pro!

Check out the new and improved Cyclapse Pro at cyclapse.com.

The Cyclapse housing and mounting system have been designed from the ground up specifically for long-term time-lapse photography with digital SLR cameras. Cyclapse is our current best recommendation for long-term time-lapse applications.

The Time-Lapse Camera Package is a complete system for documenting construction projects, animal behavior monitoring, analyzing environmental changes, and an amazing variety of other long-term outdoor photographic tasks.

This equipment will yield significantly higher resolution and higher quality images than can be achieved with “web camera” equipment, and is designed to be completely autonomous. No connection to AC power, computers, networks, or video recorders are needed. You own the equipment, and there are no monthly charges!

Except for a few mounting screws to suit your particular application, everything you need is included and completely assembled. The system can be installed in as little as a few minutes.

Time-Lapse Camera Package

Items included:

Optional Modifications:

AC Power Adapter Cable: $50, plus $1 per foot.

The system is normally charged using the included solar panel. If you are installing in an indoor location, or would like to use AC power to keep the internal battery charged, we can provide a adapter cable to connect the included AC battery charger to the system, using the charge connection on the top of the housing.

Standard length is 10 ft ($60). Contact us for custom lengths.

DC Power 'Y' cable: $75, plus $1 per foot

The system is normally charged using the included solar panel. If you are installing in an area that has little or seasonal sunshine (for instance, in the arctic wintertime), and would like to use an external DC power source (e.g., car battery) to keep the internal battery charged, we can provide an adapter cable. This cable would connect the included solar panel, the charge connection on the housing, as well as an un-terminated power cable, which you can attach to a battery, or other DC power source. We also include a 2 ohm, 3 watt resistor, which we recommend installing in series with the positive terminal of your power source, to limit the charge current to our internal battery.

Standard length is 10 ft ($85). Contact us for custom lengths.

Dual Battery Option: $210

The battery that comes with the system is a 11.1V, 9AH battery pack, which is sufficient to power the system for more than a month, without any charging at all. This is sufficient capacity for the vast majority of customers, allowing the system to operate through long periods of gloomy weather (no solar charging), etc. A dual battery option will double that capacity, which might be useful if you operate without any charging power.

External USB Download: $100

Normally you would extract images by swapping memory cards in the camera. If your equipment is on a high pole, and access is difficult, we can add two external cables to the housing allowing access to the camera's USB feature.

  1. Camera USB cable - this is only about 1 ft long, and has a USB type A connector. It's simply routed through the housing, connected to the camera, and the hole sealed. You will need to buy and install a USB extension cable. If the distance needed is only up to 3 meters, a simple passive USB extension cable can be used. For longer distances, an active USB repeater cable may be needed. The ends of this cable should be protected from the elements, either by a waterproof seal using silicone rubber or self-adhering tape. Alternatively, the connections can be shielded from the elements, allowing air to reach the connectors, to keep them dry. A partially sealed connection will accumulate moisture and cause corrosion.
  2. Wake-up switch cable - This thin cable has a switch at the end, which will cause the camera to wake, and take a picture when pressed. This will then allow the camera to recognize the USB connection. The cable is also routed through a sealed hole in the housing, and connected to the DigiSnap 2700 time-lapse controller. The length of this cable is normally 30 ft, but if the site requires a longer cable, simply let us know.

Lens Options:

The standard 18-55mm lens has a 63 degree maximum horizontal angle of view (HAOV). Three wide-angle lenses are available to provide a greater angle of view:

With each of these options, you will still receive the Canon 18-55mm kit lens. Each of these lenses will fit well in our standard housing. The Tokina fisheye requires careful adjustment of the camera position to place it close to the glass window, in order to get maximum coverage. While the Tokina is a fisheye lens, it's not a circular fisheye, and the image is surprisingly un-distorted.

Larger lenses can be accommodated by modifying the housing window. Contact us for specific requirements. We can help with the math as well!

Low Temperature Modification: $60

The system has been proven by many many customers in the arctic, and even the antarctic. There are only a couple circuits that have demonstrated temperature sensitivity, and we can address them by a couple of modifications to the production circuits. This is really only necessary if your equipment will be operating at less than -10C.

Tripod plate: $100

We can machine and install a threaded aluminum plate on the bottom of the housing, for use with any tripod. The plate is threaded with 1/4-20, 3/8-16, and 5/8-11 threaded holes.

USB-to-Serial converter cable: $20

Configuring a DigiSnap 2000 series controller requires a serial port. If your computer does not have a serial port, you will need a USB-to-Serial converter cable. This USB-to-Serial converter cable is based on the FTDI chipset, which we have found to be of high quality and very reliable. We supply drivers for this converter cable for Windows and Mac OS X; modern Linux distributions come with the required driver pre-installed (click here to download current drivers for Windows, OS X, or Linux).

Cellular Network:

While the Time-Lapse Package was originally designed to be autonomous, requiring no connections to mains power nor networks, it is possible to add the capability to transfer images via the cellular telephone (3G/4G) network. With the Cellular Network option, we provide the same WiFi memory card used in the WiFi Network option, as well as an adapter to convert the WiFi signals to a USB port, for use with a cellular modem. We also provide a power source for the adapter. All of this equipment is installed within the watertight housing, and the system can be used normally if you do not need to use a network. Please refer to Time-Lapse Package: Cellular Network option for more information on how to configure the camera and WiFi memory card, DigiSnap, and other details. You will need to purchase a USB cellular modem from your local network provider, and set up an account with your local provider for the data transfer. Harbortronics does not charge any monthly fees!

The Pro X2 WiFi memory card has been discontinued by EyeFi, and they are no longer in distribution. Our current network options are based exclusively on the Pro X2 card, so while we are able to offer the other components, networking will not work without these cards. If you have or are able to acquire a Pro X2 card, we are happy to provide the rest of the equipment for these options.

Additional Product Photos:

Note: some photos show Pentax cameras. New Time-Lapse Camera Packages will ship with the Canon EOS Rebel T5 (1200D).

Internal view of the Time-Lapse Camera Package with dual battery option.Internal view of the Time-Lapse Camera Package with dual battery option.

Time-Lapse Package with dual-battery option

Camera mount extends to allow access to camera menus and memory card. The magnetic arm system preserves the camera's original position in the housing.

Front view of closed Time-Lapse Camera Package

Rear view of Time-Lapse Camera Package, showing mounting brackets.

Mounting Examples


Use the ball mount to mount the Time-Lapse Camera Package to flat surfaces.

Use u-bolts to mount the Time-Lapse Camera Package to a pole.

See more mounting examples from around the world...

Part Details (example only, shipped fully assembled)


All Parts

Mechanical

Mounts

Battery Pack & Charger
Circuit Block
Circuit Block (top)

Enclosure

Accessories