Camera options for my property?

[atca]

Hi

I am looking to mount 4 cameras on the following property at A, B1/2, C and D. Plus a front doorbell cam.

I plan to mount them at the sofit level which would be c. 4.75m. I cannot decide between positions B1 and B2. B2 could be reachable, the sofit is around 2.4-5m.

Any recommendations - particularly on mm/FoV?

I was thinking turrets as follows:

A 2.8mm @ 8mp = 111deg & V:59deg

B1 2.8mm @ 8mp = H:111deg & V:59deg / or
B2 4.0mm @ 8mp = H:87deg & V:38deg

C 2.8mm @ 6mp = H:105deg & V:55deg

D 2.8mm @ 6mp = H:105deg & V:55deg

Interestingly nextdoor has gone with bullets.

Front

With 87deg ~90deg FOV at the front coverage would be:

6mp - DS-2CD2366G2-ISU/SL
2.8 mm, horizontal FOV 105°, vertical FOV 55°, diagonal FOV 127°;
4 mm, horizontal FOV 78°, vertical FOV:38°, diagonal FOV 96°;

8mp - DS-2CD2386G2-ISU/SL
2.8 mm, horizontal FOV 111°, vertical FOV 59°, diagonal FOV 131°
4 mm, horizontal FOV 87°, vertical FOV 47°, diagonal FOV 102°

 

[Dan]

Hi @atca

What you've shared above is one possible solution, but there are some potential problems.

Mounting Height: It is quite common to soffit mount cameras but only when covering longer/larger areas, with the 7-10m area you have to cover if you soffit mount you will mainly be looking down on the top of people's heads as they approach the property. To avoid this we would recommend mounting cameras closer to head height (around 3m).

FoV: The way you currently have the cameras laid out is with them pointed towards each other and their FoVs overlapping, this overlapping FoV is what we call wasted FoV because there is no real benefit in this scenario to have the same areas covered by 2 cameras. Our recommendation would be to mount both cameras closer to the centre and have them pointed away from each other, one to the left side of the drive and one to the right side of the drive (see our annotation of your plans below).

A

With the cameras mounted in the centre looking out, you will have much less FoV overlap and as people/cars come up either side of the drive they will be facing each camera which improves the detail you will pick up. One other thing, you are looking at -ISU/SL models which have the strobe light/audible alarm features, if the cameras are pointed towards each other the strobe light flashing from one camera might impact the image of the other camera (the flashing light might even trigger the light on the other camera).

If you do position the cameras closer to the centre, you may want to consider the 2.8mm models as these have wider horizontal FoV (111°) that is more than 90 degrees and will minimise any potential blind spot between the FoV of both cameras (although in reality, this space between the cameras FoV would not be a blind spot as someone would need to pass through the FoV of either camera to reach this area not covered by the cameras).

 

[atca]

thanks, I've been thinking about this quite a bit.

Should I consider bullets over turrets? what would push me towards bullets?

 

[Dan]

Hi @atca

Turret cameras are the most popular choice for residential installs because they are a bit more discreet and are slightly more secure than bullet cameras which can be more easily moved/knocked (which can be important if you're not checking the cameras regularly because when it does come to check the footage you might find the cameras have been knocked/moved and you weren't covering the area where the incident you want to see happened).