Most dedicated timelapse cameras cost serious cash, and the cheap ones tend to die in bad weather. So one maker wired up his own instead.
According to How-To Geek, Reddit DIY engineer Atypicalworkshop built a Raspberry Pi timelapse camera that captures his backyard through a full garden renovation. The build pairs a Raspberry Pi 4 with a Camera Module 3 Wide, and the project is published as open source on GitHub.
Key facts
- Combines a Raspberry Pi 4 with a Camera Module 3 Wide for daytime captures.
- Shoots 12-megapixel photos every minute.
- Stores to an SD card, then transfers to a Mac's external archive.
- Phone-controllable with five-second and time-lapse modes.
- Follows the seasons using your latitude and longitude.
- Auto-deletes photos when the SD card hits 85% capacity.
- Project code is open source on GitHub.
Background: What tinkerers already know
Power-over-Ethernet is nothing new in outdoor camera projects, nor is dumping photos to an SD card. What is newer is how accessible AI-assisted coding has made the software side. The reference notes the code was generated with Claude, which fits a broader pattern of hobbyists leaning on large language models to write glue logic while they focus on the hardware. That shift is why weekend builds like this are becoming more common.
Our analysis
The headline appeal is control. Off-the-shelf outdoor cams usually lock you into their app, their subscription, and their storage limits. This one does the opposite. It pulls photos locally, archives them to a Mac, and lets you scrub back to a specific day and time without paying anyone monthly.
The cost trade-off is skill. You are trading dollars for hours. Between the Pi, the camera module, PoE gear, a junction box for the enclosure, and a 3D-printed wall mount, the parts list is not trivial, and the reference warns there is no step-by-step guide yet. You will be running command-line tools on both the Pi and the Mac. If editing config files makes you twitch, this is not your Saturday project.
Compared with repurposing an old phone, you get longer runtimes and better weather resistance, plus proper archival. Compared with a dedicated weatherproof cam, you give up plug-and-play simplicity. The sweet spot is a tinkerer who wants a multi-year record of a fixed scene, not a casual user who just wants a clip for Instagram.
Say you are documenting a raised-bed garden through a full growing season
Pick a south-facing wall with a clean sightline to the beds. Run an outdoor-rated PoE line from your switch to the enclosure, mount it under an eave, and aim the wide lens to include sky and beds in the frame. Set it to shoot every minute during daylight. After two weeks you will see growth patterns. After two months you will have a real seasonal record you can scrub, not a feed you scroll. Cost: roughly a Pi, a camera module, PoE injector or switch, a junction box, and time on a 3D printer or a printing service.
Who should care
- Backyard gardeners tracking how a bed changes month to month.
- Hardware tinkerers comfortable with CLI tools and 3D-printed mounts.
- Educators wanting a low-cost timelapse rig for a school garden.
- Renters who can run an Ethernet cable but cannot easily drill into siding.
What to watch next
Watch the GitHub repo for a proper guide. Right now the reference flags there is no step-by-step walkthrough, only the code. If you are not ready to read scripts and edit config files, hold off until the docs catch up. The same maker ecosystem also keeps producing multi-lens Pi projects, like the four-lens wigglegram build highlighted by XDA Developers, so the space is moving fast. The skills are not just for a weekend project. This is a long-term mindset of a maker who wants footage, not filters.
Key takeaways
- The build needs a Raspberry Pi 4, Camera Module 3 Wide, PoE gear, a junction box, and a 3D-printed mount.
- Auto-archival to external storage is the real win over off-the-shelf options.
- Cloud code makes the project approachable for anyone who can read and edit scripts.
- Skip it for now if you need a plug-and-play setup; wait for a full guide.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use a Raspberry Pi Zero instead of a Pi 4?
The reference specifies the Raspberry Pi 4. A Pi Zero has weaker processing and would likely struggle with the workload, so stick with the 4 for this project.
Does this work as a security camera?
No. The reference is explicit that it will not flag intruders or alert you to a delivery on the porch, and that is by design.
How long before the SD card fills up?
The reference says the camera automatically deletes older photos once the card hits 85% capacity, so usable life depends on your photo frequency and card size.
Do I need a 3D printer?
The reference calls for a 3D-printed wall mount and camera bracket. You can order prints from a print service if you do not own a printer.
Is the code safe to modify?
The reference notes it is open source on GitHub, so you can read it, tweak it, and rebuild. You should still review any code before running it on your network.