Looxcie HD Camera questions

[Bart1701]

I bought a Looxcie HD camera to use on my N Gauge layout based on recommendations from a previous post.

Overall, I am quite pleased with the camera. The colors are true to life, and the focus range is about as good as I'd expect for shooting on an N Gauge layout.

Here is a sample video:

Since the Looxcie apps are no longer available for my iPad, all I have to go with for instructions is the limited User Manual I received and some other info I got from the internet.

When I put the camera down on a flat car ( with the battery on the bottom ), it turned out that the camera was a little too wide and would bump into my signal posts and some tree limbs. (In the attached video, you'll see that one of the ladders for a signal was knocked off - it's laying on the ground next to the signal! It has been repaired since then!)

So, I turned the camera 90 degrees so that the battery was on the side and the width of the camera on the flat car was narrower. That let the camera clear everything on the layout, but the video was also coming out in "portrait" mode rather than "landscape" mode and the "ground side" of the images were all on the left side of the video frame rather than one the bottom (Hope what I am trying to explain is clear!)

Anyways, I pressed some of the buttons on the camera (there's not that many to press) and somehow got the camera to record in proper landscape mode when the camera was on its side. The problem is that I have absolutely no idea what I did to make this change.

Does anyone know what you to change between landscape and portrait shooting modes?

Any other advice you can give me about using the camera, or links to good info on the web?

Thanks,
Bart

[jdcolombo]

That's just downright cool

John C.

[Mark W]

Does anyone know what you to change between landscape and portrait shooting modes?

Any other advice you can give me about using the camera, or links to good info on the web?

Online Manual libraries are usually a life-saver in these situations.  Unfortunately the manual for this seems to only reference the App settings.  Might be a hint at why they are now out of business, but in any case:

https://www.manualslib.com/manual/688955/Looxcie-Looxcie-Hd.html#manual

I don't know if there are any screens or indicators on the camera, but if so shooting orientation would be under camera settings.  Usually close by to where you select resolution/frame rate. 

Other than that, once you're all done recording and are editing on the computer, put in an AutoContract/Color filter.  The camera is trying to record as large of a dynamic-range as possible, but that means the footage will appear muted/flat, as you can see in your video.  The Auto Contrast and color filter, which is pretty common to any editing program will then pull those vibrant colors out and give the shot more depth/contrast.