GoLive settings (app, example settings, and explanation)

For a complete reference list (with explanations) of camera settings in both the camera and app, please see Camera Settings Reference.

(This information is from camera test team member Elizabeth Swoope)

I'm often asked about my settings, so I thought that I’d post an example. These are the settings that I use for all my cameras except for three that are on feeders. Feeder cameras are set with trigger intervals of from 2 to 5 minutes.

• Camera Description: displays on the app home page. By default, it’s the camera model. I use two-digit numbers to start my descriptions to help me order the cameras the way I want them.
• Camera Mode: all of my video-capable cams run Photo + Video
• Nametag: Up to 8 characters that will print on the photo info strip. The default is the camera model.
• Photo size: I use 4 MP.
• Thumbnail size: the large ones are usually good enough that I don’t need to request the HD photo. Regular thumbnails transmit a little quicker but they are grainy and don’t zoom well.
• Video settings: I use 20 seconds. The only size available in photo + video is 1920 * 1080. (In video only mode, which I don't use, you can choose 800 * 480, 1280 * 720, or 1920 * 1080.)
• Trigger settings:
  Sensitivity normal (my experience is that there's seldom a reason to use any other setting),
  
  Trigger Interval 0 seconds because that gives me pictures as fast as the camera can take and send them. This is not how fast the camera takes pictures (i.e., setting 30 seconds doesn’t mean the camera takes pictures every 30 seconds). It is the “rest” time between when the camera finishes sending a picture and when it can take another if there is still motion in front of the camera. If the camera is on a feeder or somewhere with a lot of activity, I increase this (to a minute or more, usually more).
  
  Timelapse I don't use timelapse unless I am testing a camera and need a lot of pictures in a short time. You can use this to monitor a food plot where deer may be grazing far enough away from the camera that they don't trigger the camera or to record the progress of a construction project. The available settings are 30 seconds to a minute in 5 second increments, 1 minute to 60 minutes in 1 minute increments, and 1 to 8 hours in 1 hour increments. For settings less than a minute, the camera may not be able to take and transmit a photo in that short a time so you will want to experiment with the time that works best.
  
  
• Trigger Settings: Start-Stop: The GoLive has four Start-Stop settings. I use these on the security cameras around our buildings when we are at the camp, starting at 9 PM and stopping at 6 AM so I'm not inundated with pictures of us moving around from 6 AM to 9 PM. If you want the camera to run all 24 hours, you need to set start stop times so the entire day is covered. Trigger Interval and Timelapse are the same as explained above. How to use Start-Stop times

• Trigger Settings: Work Day: Use if you want the camera to work only on certain days.
• System Settings:
  Camera Time Zone make absolutely, positively sure that you set this.
  Time Stamp On if you want the info strip on your photos, Off if you don't.
  Flash Power High for most situations but if your target area is small or the backdrop is very close, you may want to try Low.
  Overwrite You will probably want Overwrite on (checked), as well. This means that when the SD card is full, the camera will write the newest photos and video over the oldest ones.
  Camera Locator and Camera Tracker Camera Locator enables the camera to retrieve its geolocation when camera movement is detected. Camera Tracker enables the locator to work even if the camera is turned off. In most cases, both should be ON.
• Wireless Settings:
  Live Stream should be ON even if you don’t plan to live stream. This keeps the camera logged in to the cell network at all times so that the camera will respond to your requests for HD photos, videos, setting changes, take photo now, and live stream immediately. If you turn it OFF, your camera won’t live stream or take photo now and it will only respond to requests after the next time it contacts the server to send a photo, video, or status report.
  Send Photos should be checked.
  Daily Limit 0. If you want to limit the number of photos, use a longer trigger interval. Otherwise, you’re going to get the first 20 or 50 or 100 photos after midnight rather than pics all during the day.

My Scheduled Event settings:
Midnight: status report
3 AM: status report (this will update the time when the time changes)
7 AM: status report or photo (test cameras). 
9 AM: photo
Noon: status report or photo (test cameras)
3 PM: photo
6 PM: status report or photo (test cameras)
9 PM: photo

There are a couple of unused events with this schedule. You may want more or fewer events at different times. Some of my cameras aren’t in active locations so the only pics I may get from them for a couple or three weeks are the event photos.

Note: the GoLive has an additional scheduled event, Batch Sending, which means that the camera will not send photos as soon as they are taken, it will wait until the scheduled Batch Sending event and send them then. For more information, please refer to Camera Settings Reference.