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How to mount and power a DSLR on the dash for time-lapse

Started Sep 28, 2017 | Questions thread
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Snow_n_Surf New Member • Posts: 2
How to mount and power a DSLR on the dash for time-lapse

So I"ve been trying to come up with a good solution to mount a camera on the dash and power it for extended periods. I travel cross country frequently, sometimes through some pretty interesting and beautiful places, and I thought it would be cool to create some time-lapse videos of the journey to share with those who aren't fortunate enough to visit these areas.

The first question is how to power the camera for several hours. I've got a Panasonic G85 and I'd like to be able to power it off of the cigarette lighter. I can get a DC coupler and AC power adapter such as this:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XTNR6PF/_encoding=UTF8?coliid=IPVM9B6XNVX8W&colid=2U6NWFFPJ9XTK

and then plug it into an AC cigarette lighter converter. But this would mean I'm essentially taking a DC powered source (the car), converting it to AC, then back again to DC to power the camera. This seems over complicated and inefficient. The dummy battery has a plug on it though, so does anyone know if I can just get a cigarette lighter adapter that will plug into it? Would it need to be able to convert from 12v to the camera voltage (7.5-8.5v?), or is that done internally in the camera?

The second half of the equation is how to mount the camera. I don't have a whole lot of faith in suction cups, but so far the majority of options I've found use them.  I've got 2 vehicles I may use so I don't want to drill any holes or mount anything permanently. The best solution I've found was this:

https://stickypod.com/2012/08/28/sticky-pod-dash-cam-instructions/

.....and of course, it's discontinued.  So at the moment I'm considering making something similar.  What I like about it is, although it has suction cups, it doesn't have to rely on the dash to hold it in place.  The additional cup that attaches to the windshield does that.   Does anyone have experience using a stickypod or something similar?  Any other mounting solutions I might consider?

Thanks for taking the time to read my post.  I look forward to your response.

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Panasonic G85
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