IP Camera Discoloration Troubleshooting

Video Image Discoloration Troubleshooting

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Affected Roles:  Administrator

Complexity:  Medium to High

Last Edit:  June 15, 2020

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Camera Discoloration

Extended exposure to direct sunlight, a defective IR filter, or issues with a camera’s cut-filter can cause issues with video discoloration. Most commonly reported is the presentation of a pink tint to the overall camera image or around the edges of the video stream.

This article will outline the troubleshooting process to resolve camera discoloration issues using the camera’s web client.

Note:  For more troubleshooting information regarding IP Camera video, check out IP Camera Streaming Troubleshooting Guide.

Note:  This article focuses on troubleshooting the Digital Watchdog MEGApix Camera Series.  If you are using a third-party camera, the issue is likely also being caused by a cut-filter or IR sensor issue.  Please contact the camera manufacturer for troubleshooting third-party hardware.

Supported/Affected Devices

• DW MEGApix Camera Series

Troubleshooting Process

When encountering camera coloration problems, some simple things that you can try:

1. Power-cycle the camera.

You may reboot the camera by:

1. 1. Disconnecting, then reconnecting the camera’s power cable.  It is recommended to leave the camera powered off for 10 – 90 seconds, before reconnecting power.
   2. Disconnecting, then reconnecting the camera’s PoE (Power-over-Ethernet) connection.  It is recommended to leave the camera powered off for 10 – 90 seconds, before reconnecting power.
   3. Use the Reboot function of the camera. To do so, connect with the camera’s web client, then select the Configuration menu.  The Reboot function can be located in the Maintenance submenu.

2. If rebooting the camera did not resolve the discoloration issue, another thing that you can try is to cycle through the Day and Night modes.

From the camera’s Configuration menu, select the Image settings.  For some camera models, you may also need to select the Display submenu.

Change the Day/Night mode setting to Night mode.  This will tell the camera to change to a black/white display, cycling the camera’s cut-filter as well.

After the camera changes to a black and white picture, change the Day/Night setting back to Auto.

Note:  If the camera does not change between the Day and Night modes, apply and save the settings to the camera, then reboot the camera before trying again.

3. If cycling the camera’s Day/Night filter mode does not resolve the discoloration issue, default the camera.

From the Configuration menu of the camera, select the Maintenance section.

“Soft-default” the camera.  When soft-defaulting, select to keep the Network Configuration Settings as they are. This way, you will not need to reconfigure the camera’s IP addressing after the camera completes the default.

Note:  If soft-defaulting does not seem to help, you can completely default the camera. In doing so, you will be required to set the camera up again, including the camera’s network settings.

4. If soft-defaulting did not resolve the issue with the camera, it is recommended to update the camera firmware.

If the camera firmware is currently up-to-date, it is still recommended to flash the firmware.  Like defaulting, this may serve to reset an unknown setting that may be causing the camera to act in this problematic manner.

Note:  For more information with updating IP camera firmware, check out Updating MEGApix Camera Firmware.

5. Use the Hard Reset button of the camera.

Inside of the camera housing, locate the Reset button, then hold it down for ten (10) seconds.  The camera will reboot and factory default all settings.

Note:  Some camera models, such as DW MEGApix panoramic model cameras or turret model cameras are not intended to be opened. Please consult your camera manual for more information.

If the issue persists, please take a photo or image capture of the camera’s discolored video image, then contact Digital Watchdog Technical Support for further assistance.