How to set up web cam.

Belkin netcam will do what you want. Requires computer or smart phone for initial setup. Cost $99/ for service. I have two of them and can view them on my smart phone from anywhere in the world. I'm sure there are others.

I re-read your post. Mine doesn't take a picture. It records when it detects motion and saves to a server. You can access it realtime, or look back at saved video.

I am not aware of any webcam that will natively send still shots. Everything I have seen requires a computer of some sort - a Raspberry Pi or Arduino at a minimum.

If there is nothing wrong with viewing video - or being able to download a still image - you can do both with many existing webcams. Trendnet cameras are good for this.

If you can tell us some more about your use case - where you will view it from and on what, and what need you have for images versus video, etc, we can probably help you more.

Take a look at Foscam camera's. For $60 they pack a whopping amount of functions.

What you are asking I do. The only difference is I have the camera's web enabled which requires your wireless router to be configured to have an open port. That is the tough part.

Go to the Foscam website, they have several nice video's on setting up their cams.

Maybe something like this ??? I've used this with great results....
http://www.sebectec.com/download/index.htm

Here is one camera from Portsmouth NH
http://www.portsmouthwebcam.com/index.php/tugboats/

Here is the way I do it from home. This method requires you have access to an old unused android smart phone though, and I have three or four old ones. Web Cam Using Smartphone

We use Foscam's, FI8910W. Bought a pair on Amazon years ago for $100, and recently bought another for $60. They are rated for indoor use but work quite well even in 20 below zero weather outdoors - as long as they are under shelter outside as they probably wouldn't tolerate rain or snow all that well. I know Foscam does make the outdoor cameras but most are not pan/tilt/zoom. If you don't need the ability to turn the camera, might be worth looking at.

As stated earlier, they can be configured to send an email on motion detection. In practice, the farther away from the camera, the fewer pictures they'll send. I have ours set to 9 in order to catch motion about 80 feet away. They also can be configured to be accessed remotely but again as stated, you would need to open a port on your router (using NAT or port forwarding).

Oh, and they are pan/tilt, remotely movable. No zoom, but they also have infrared. The negative is that any light changes (clouds over the sun, then back to sun) results in a motion detect. We've had days when we received 150 emails with pictures of our place with cloud shadows. You can, however, configure a schedule when the cameras will be off. The newest firmware also does sound detection.

First time setup requires a computer to plug in wired, then you can configure wireless. You also need to know how to configure the email services that it will send the pictures.

All in all, semi-difficult to set up, but once set up it's easy to access.

Thanks for the feedback gang. I will definitely dig into the Foscam options.

This setup is for an outdoor school in Idaho where I work. I would like students to be able to view weather conditions before they come as part of their pre-adventure activities.

Camp, Forrest, Camp! wrote:
This setup is for an outdoor school in Idaho where I work. I would like students to be able to view weather conditions before they come as part of their pre-adventure activities.

Weellllll.... if that's the case then think about the Amazon $60 Foscam and give the kids the HTTP address to it. Comes free from Foscam.

Then create an operator user ID / password that they enter and can only move the camera around. Might as well give them some techno-fun.

I own a bunch of these cameras. Made by Reolink, they do not require a computer. You only need a computer for recording. You can access the camera directly through a web browser, you just need to know the IP Address of the camera.

Setup is simple. If you have a smartphone, all you need to do is connect the camera to your network and then scan the bar code on the bottom of the camera. Otherwise, just find the IP address through the router and connect to it through your web browser. I have mine setup and connected to a laptop because I record the footage.

-Michael