Time-Lapse FAQ: Common Questions & Troubleshooting

Find answers to the most common questions about webcam.io time-lapse features. Can’t find what you’re looking for? Contact us.

Camera Setup

What is the image URL of my IP camera?

The snapshot URL varies by camera brand. Try these methods:

  1. Search online: [your camera model] snapshot URL or [camera model] JPEG URL
  2. Camera database: ispyconnect.com/cameras — 10,000+ models
  3. Camera web interface: Look in Network, Streaming, or Video settings

Common formats:

Common snapshot URL formats
Brand Snapshot URL Format
Hikvision http://IP/ISAPI/Streaming/channels/101/picture
Axis http://IP/axis-cgi/jpg/image.cgi
Dahua http://IP/cgi-bin/snapshot.cgi
Foscam http://IP/cgi-bin/CGIProxy.fcgi?cmd=snapPicture2

See also: Time-Lapse Setup Guide

How can I use a password-protected camera?

Include username and password in the URL:

http://username:password@your-camera-ip/snapshot.jpg

Special characters in password?

URL-encode special characters or use a simpler password:

Character Encoded
@ %40
: %3A
/ %2F
# %23
? %3F

Advanced authentication required?

Some cameras require digest or NTLM authentication. Enable “Use advanced HTTP authentication” in Webcams → Edit → Advanced Settings.

My camera image is always the same — why?

Your camera or network is likely caching images. Add a timestamp parameter to bypass the cache:

http://your-camera/snapshot.jpg?{timestamp}

webcam.io automatically replaces {timestamp} with a unique value for each request.

Already have a timestamp parameter?

Replace it with our variable:

# Before
http://camera/img.jpg?t=1234567890

# After
http://camera/img.jpg?t={timestamp}

How do I connect a USB webcam?

USB webcams aren’t directly supported, but you can use capture software:

Windows:

  • Yawcam — Free, FTP upload built-in
  • TinCam — Lightweight

Mac/Linux:

  • fswebcam — Command-line capture
  • ffmpeg — Advanced capture options

Setup process:

  1. Configure software to capture JPEG snapshots
  2. Set up scheduled FTP upload to ftp.webcam.io
  3. Use your webcam.io FTP credentials

See: Script-Based Upload

FTP Upload

How can I upload images with a script?

Use any FTP client. Here’s an example with lftp:

lftp -e "put image.jpg; bye" -u USERNAME,PASSWORD ftp.webcam.io

Raspberry Pi example:

#!/bin/bash
# Capture and upload
fswebcam -r 1920x1080 /tmp/webcam.jpg
lftp -e "put /tmp/webcam.jpg; bye" -u user_abc123,secretpass ftp.webcam.io

Schedule with cron:

* * * * * /home/pi/upload.sh

See: FTP Setup Guide

FTP test succeeds but no images appear — why?

The FTP test only verifies login credentials. You also need to:

  1. Configure capture schedule in your camera
  2. Enable FTP upload for scheduled snapshots (not just motion events)
  3. Match intervals — camera interval should match webcam.io settings

Hikvision: Configuration → Storage → Schedule Settings → Capture
Axis: Settings → Events → Rules (create scheduled event)
Dahua: Setup → Storage → Schedule → Snapshot

FTP connection fails — how do I fix it?

Checklist:

Issue Solution
Wrong credentials Re-check username/password (case-sensitive)
DNS resolution fails Use static IP instead: see Static IPs
Passive mode disabled Enable passive mode in camera settings
Firewall blocking Allow outbound port 21
Extra spaces Remove any leading/trailing spaces in credentials

Test FTP manually:

ftp ftp.webcam.io
# Enter username and password when prompted

Text Overlays

How do I use dynamic text overlays?

Dynamic overlays let you display changing information (weather, sensor data) on your images.

1. Configure in Dashboard:

Go to Webcams → Edit → Text Overlays, add:

{dynamic_text1}

2. Update via API:

curl -X PUT "https://webcam.io/api/webcams/WEBCAM-ID" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "X-Auth-Email: your@email.com" \
  -H "X-Auth-Key: YOUR-API-KEY" \
  -d '{"dynamic_text1": "Temperature: 23°C"}'

3. Or pull from URL:

{url:http://your-server.com/weather.txt}

The file should contain plain text (max 240 characters).

See: Text Overlays Documentation | API Reference

What variables can I use in text overlays?

Available overlay variables
Variable Output
{timestamp} Current date/time in your timezone
{date} Current date
{time} Current time
{dynamic_text1} API-updated text variable 1
{dynamic_text2} API-updated text variable 2
{dynamic_text3} API-updated text variable 3
{url:http://...} Text fetched from URL

Videos & Downloads

What is the permanent link to my latest image?

# Standard resolution (640×480)
https://assets1.webcam.io/w/WEBCAM-ID/latest.jpg

# HD resolution (up to 1920×1080, paid plans)
https://assets1.webcam.io/w/WEBCAM-ID/latest_hd.jpg

# Small thumbnail (240×180)
https://assets1.webcam.io/w/WEBCAM-ID/latest_sm.jpg

# Animated preview (GIF)
https://assets1.webcam.io/w/WEBCAM-ID/preview.gif

Find your Webcam ID in Dashboard → Webcams.

How do I download time-lapse videos?

Daily videos:

  1. Go to Dashboard → Videos
  2. Select camera and date
  3. Click download link (MP4, WebM)

Image archives (ZIP):

  1. Go to Dashboard → Image Export
  2. Select camera and date range
  3. Request export — you’ll receive an email with download link

Clips:

  1. On webcam page, create a clip (mark in/out points)
  2. Wait a few minutes for rendering
  3. Download from clip page

Why is my video flipped/mirrored?

Some camera models output mirrored images.

Fix:

  1. Go to Webcams → Edit → Advanced Settings
  2. Enable “Flip horizontal” or “Flip vertical”
  3. Save — new videos will be corrected
Note

This only affects future videos.

Can I delete all images from a specific day?

Yes:

  1. Go to your webcam page
  2. Find the day in the “Days” list
  3. Click the trash icon next to the day

You can also delete an entire week or all images. See “Delete images and clips” box on the webcam page.

Warning

Deletion is permanent and also removes any clips from that period. Allow a few minutes for deletion to complete.

Widgets & Embedding

Which values can I use for custom widget ranges?

Relative time:

7 days ago 12:30
3 days ago
yesterday 2am
50 minutes ago

Weekday-based:

last week monday 00:00
last week sunday 23:59
last sunday 10:00

Specific time:

12:00
14:30
6:31am

Date-specific:

2025-01-15 08:00:00
January 15 at 7pm

Important: If the range is invalid or outside your storage period, the default range is shown instead.

See: Widgets Documentation

Why doesn’t my widget load?

Common causes:

Issue Solution
Privacy mode set | Disable “privacy mode” checkbox in Advanced settings |
Invalid Webcam ID | Verify ID in dashboard |
Custom range error | Check range syntax |
Range outside storage | Use a range within your plan’s storage period |

YouTube Export

My YouTube upload isn’t working — how do I fix it?

Step 1: Re-authorize

Go to Dashboard → Integrations → YouTube → Click “Re-authorize”

Step 2: If still not working

  1. Go to Google Account Security
  2. Find “webcam.io” in connected apps
  3. Remove the connection
  4. Return to webcam.io and authorize again

Step 3: Check YouTube requirements

Troubleshooting

Images not appearing or listed in dashboard

For Image URL (pull) method:

  1. Test URL in browser — should show JPEG image
  2. Check URL is accessible from internet (not local IP)
  3. Add {timestamp} to bypass caching
  4. Enable “Advanced HTTP authentication” if needed

For FTP upload:

  1. Verify credentials (check for spaces)
  2. Enable passive mode
  3. Check capture schedule is configured in camera
  4. Try static IP if DNS doesn’t resolve

Dashboard shows “empty file” errors

Causes:

  • Camera requires digest authentication
  • Image URL returns HTML instead of JPEG
  • Network timeout

Solutions:

  1. Enable “Use advanced HTTP authentication” in Advanced Settings
  2. Verify URL returns a JPEG (not a login page)
  3. Check camera/network stability

Time-lapse playback is slow

If using long time ranges (week/month):

  • Many images need to load
  • Use shorter ranges for faster loading

If recent footage:

  • Check your internet connection
  • Try a different browser

Still Have Questions?

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