My camera takes pictures, but not as many as I'd expect, or the pictures are delayed

Lack of pictures could be due to:

• Power:  Freezing temperatures can kill batteries and temporarily limit the effectiveness of solar panels. To overcome this keep your spare battery pack charged up in the winter for more frequent swaps or use Lithium AA batteries and consider adding an external power source, such as a solar panel or 12V battery. 
• Motion sensor cover: Your motion sensor sits behind the curved brown rectangular covering on the front of your camera. Over time, dust and dirt can accumulate and make it tougher for the motion sensor to detect motion. Try gently cleaning and inspecting this motion sensor covering for dirt, scratches, holes, or other damage. You can also email a picture of your motion sensor cover to support@yellowstone.ai and we can review it for potential damage. This item is covered by our lifetime warranty, you just pay $5 for shipping. 
• Camera placement: The camera will detect motion and take a picture 0.4 seconds later. If your subjects are close to the camera and moving quickly, they might be out of the camera’s view before the camera has time to take a picture. If you believe this is happening, try to move the camera back, so that subjects spend more time in front of the camera before exiting the field of view.
• Mount:  For most situations, the camera should be mounted 3 feet off the ground. The motion sensor is most sensitive in the middle third of your picture. Try tilting the camera so that the activity you are monitoring occurs in the middle of your screen.

These in-person troubleshooting steps might be helpful if you happen to be at the camera and the other tips here don't help. Delayed pictures could be due to:

• Poor cell service: If your mobile device does not have service, then you will not receive your pictures until you have a signal again.
• Settings: If your upload frequency is set to anything other than "Instant," you will not receive your pictures until that time.  For example, a "Daily at 6AM" setting will result in all your previous days' pictures arriving to your phone at 6am.  If you would like to receive your pictures right after they are taken, set your Upload Frequency setting to "Instant."