Camera Mounts for Counter?

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TessaE

TessaE

CGF II, Certified Grumble Framer Level 2
Joined
Aug 12, 2006
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402
Loc
Asheville, NC
I ordered the Frame Vue from Lifesaver in Atlanta this weekend. Looking forward to using it I just have to get all the equipment. So to my question...
I was wondering how people have mounted the camera. I Have very tall ceilings, maybe 10-12 feet, so I don't think the camera mounted 8feet away from my counter will work, or will it? And what about cables? I was thinking a pole with an arm mounted to my table? ideas? suggestions?
 
I have a ceiling mounted camera here, very good way to use FraameVue.

A higher ceiling, IMHO, is a big plus. It really comes handy with large art pieces. Just make sure the camera you choose has enough zooming power for the (much) smaller art pieces.

I recently upgraded to a Canon S3 IS (from Beachcamera.com) great price (about $275, shipped) and fast service, and great camera / zoom.
 
My S1-IS Canon camera is mounted on a 12 ft. ceiling, about 8 ft. above the design table. Focal & zoom ranges are good. I was concerned about using 20 ft. of USB cable extensions, but that connection works just fine without amplification. The AC power comes from an extension cord laid above the ceiling tiles.

White balance and color rendition seem to be the main issues with any of the visualization software programs, those issues are influenced mostly by the lighting, monitor, and camera settings. I know Frame Vue enables selection of those camera features by the keyboard, and I'm sure all of the programs will soon, if they don't already. Some tweaking of your monitor and camera settings will be needed to get the best color rendition, but it still won't be perfect unless you suffer considerable expense for a special monitor and color-matching software.
 
USB Repeaters are usually the best way to go, because theyre inexpensive (<~$25) and will extend the existing cable by about 15' at the faster usb 2.0 speed. If you find that you need 30 feet, you can connect two of these devices together.

For the bracket, we use a security camera bracket. They're are about the same price (under $25) and are ideal for this purpose.

For the power supply, I suggest the recommended one from Canon. You can get this from Beach Camera, or even cheaper from amazon.com

The Canon S3 IS is a fantastic camera model for this application.

If you have ANY questions about this program or how to set it up, dont hesitate to email me directly.

It was nice to meet ya!

Mike
 
Tessa, your cheapest option will be either a tripod or a boom-mount that you can attach to your design table. You can set it up and take it down as needed. Mounting the camera on the ceiling, with all the associated cable runs, will cost you quite a bit more, as you can imagine, depending on how your store is set up and what electricians cost in your area.
 
I like the boom-mount idea, because of the location of my counter, in the middle of a room. I dont think I want 8 feet of wires hanging down from my counter to computer. But I will still need some usb and power expanders. Thanks for the info everyone.
Nice to meet you too Mike. Yummy dinner!
 
Does Frame Vue come with a ceiling mounting bracket?

Mechanically, you need some sort of bracket to hold the camera on the ceiling.

You can get "L brackets" in the hardware section of Lowes, Home Depot, etc. These are L shaped pieces of metal. For your purposes pick one about 4 or 5 inches on a side. They have 2 or 3 drilled holes on each of the two straight sections. Pick up some 1.5" long countersunk screws to attach the bracket to the ceiling. Use short 1/4-20 screw (about 1/2" long at most) to secure your camera to one of the holes that will be hanging down.

Worst case is you may need to drill or file out the hole used for the 1/4-20 camera holding screw. There are various kinds of brackets, the ones in the "mending plate" section are the ones you want.

Be sure your cables are well supported as with a clamp somewhere near the camera. Otherwise if the cables get a tug your camera will be damaged.

FWIW you will get much nicer pictures if you don't rely on the camera's built in flash. Face-on flash gives you horrible hot spots on moulding samples & artwork. Room light from daylight fluorescent bulbs (Like D50's) works pretty well and produces reasonably color-true images with the pocketcams, most of the framers I know already have these bulbs.
 
FrameMakers said:
http://www.belkin.com/pressroom/releases/uploads/12_04_06CFUSB_Hub.html

Just found this and thought it would be perfect for your situation. With this there would be no cables between the camera and the PC.
Click to expand...

Believe it or not, that product has already been discontinued. It had reliability issues, range issues, and wasnt compat with Vista. Theyll even give you a refund, if you have one.

A replacement model is due out later this month, but I suggest giving the vendors some time to beat it up first.
 
Paul N, for evaluating inkjet prints I use fluorescents with a color temperature of 5000K (Kelvin) which approximates the overall effect of slightly warmish daylight around 10am or the daylight in buildings with lot of windows and mixed lighting. These produce good color in digital camera photos and to the eye.

These tubes come in all the standard fluorescent lengths and bases. The better ones usually have "50" or "D50" somewhere in the name. There are no rigorous standards, although manufacturers use a loose standard called "CRI" which indicates the relative richness of the chromatic content. A CRI number over 90 is excellent, and will cost around $8 to 12 for a 4 foot tube. Bulbs with CRI's of around 85 are more than good enough for the application. Standard fluorescents come in around th mid 70's. Usually the CRI is printed on the corrugated cardboard protective sleeve...if it's not noted it's probably not that good.

The bulbs in my inkjet printer room are a mix of the following, all bought at Lowes or Home Depot. You can also get these at most professional lighting supplies, but you'll pay more.

Sylvannia Design 50
GE Chroma 50

I think the top of the line is a D50 tube made by Philips, I couldn't find any when I last looked.

Be aware that some of the "energy efficient" screw-in light bulb replacements with a "daylight" rating have what must be very low CRI's, they are dismally color-poor to both eye and camera, and should be avoided.
 
Paul N, looks like that should do the job. What I settled on were just a pair of cheap 4 foot, dual-tube shop lights that I hung from the ceiling over my printer.

Of course, if you ever REALLY want to see what color is all about, look at your stuff in bright shade in daylight. Viewing an image in true full-spectrum sunlight is simply an amazing revelation by comparison to the very best indoor lighting. I have some frame hangers in a north facing porch, whenever I finish framing a new image I take it out there just to stare at it for a few minutes, thinking Oh what a good boy am I! Makes it all worth while.
 
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