Particle Tracking Velocimetry (PTV) is a quantitative field measuring technique originally designed to track individual particles in fluid flows. In this study, PTV was applied for the first time in the context of large scale timber connection testing. The suitability of PTV in structural applications was assessed by tracking the attachment points of string potentiometers and comparing the PTV displacements to those obtained by the potentiometers. Furthermore, it was found that PTV was able to capture crack growth and compute the resulting displacement field in the connection area.