Daninkins
n3wb
I just joined the forum so there are so many things I don't know yet, I hope to have the help of the boards, and I really want to get to know you all on the forum.
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Hello
- Thread starter Daninkins
- Start date
sebastiantombs
Known around here
You'll find a lot of great information and advice here and a lot of very experienced surveillance camera users who willingly share their knowledge as well. Have a look in the Wiki, in the blue bar at the top of the page. It's loaded with solid information that you'll need to get things moving. Read, plan, revise your plan, read some more, revise again then ask some questions here. You do need to carefully consider what you are trying to accomplish with each camera. No single camera can provide good overview and good identification.
Above all, don't chase megapixels, chase the relationship of resolution, megapixels, and sensor size. High resolution on a sensor that is too small results in a camera that is basically blind at night. Any camera can be made to supply a nice color image at night if the exposure, shutter speed, is set low enough as in a second or longer, but as soon as motion starts all you'll see is a blur that renders the camera useless.
Quick guide -
The smaller the lux number the better the low light performance. 0.002 is better than 0.02
The smaller the "F" of the lens the better the low light performance. F1.4 is better than F1.8
The larger the sensor the better the low light performance. 1/1.8" is better (bigger) than 1/2.7"
The higher the megapixels for the same size sensor the worse the low light performance. A 4MP camera with a 1/1.8" sensor will perform better than a 8MP camera with that same 1/1.8" sensor.
Disclaimer - These sizes are what the manufacturers advertise and may, or may not, be the true size of the sensor in the camera.
1/3" = .333" Great for 720P
1/2.8" = .357" (think a .38 caliber bullet) Great for 2MP
1/1.8" = .555" (bigger than a .50 caliber bullet or ball) Great for 4MP
1/1.2" = .833" (bigger than a 20mm chain gun round) Great for 8MP
Don't believe all the marketing hype no matter who makes the camera. Don't believe those nice night time captures they all use. Look for videos, with motion, to determine low light performance.
Read the reviews here, most include both still shots and video.
Rule of thumb, the shutter speed needs to be at 1/60 second or higher,, preferably 1/100, to get night video without blurring.
Three rules
Rule #1 - Cameras multiply like rabbits.
Rule #2 - Cameras are more addictive than drugs.
Rule #3 - You never have enough cameras.
Welcome to IPCT ! 
Flintstone61
Known around here
Happy Camming....these guys have helped me immensely. Try not to buy any camera's until you ask about recommendations, I didn't listen to them at first, and got some Cams from Amazon, that have a User interface that is garbage....