Help me plan a security camera configuration for the outside of my house please.

[GaretJax]

There is zero lighting in my neighbourhood so it is very dark. Whatever camera(s) I use for the outside need to have good IR capabilities and/or supplemental lighting. I already have some motion detection lights so I need to make sure they don't "wash out" the cameras I use. I want to add more motion lights and will try to do so as part of the camera wiring.

I plan to run Blue Iris on a 64 bit computer with 16 GB RAM and an AMD Phenom II processor.
I would like to use POE cameras if at all possible so I don't have to run electricity to the cameras too.

How many cameras and what types of cameras would you recommended? Where should they be placed?

Thanks a lot.

 

[LittleBrother]

My take, you assume any strangers are coming from the south (if in this pic the top is north).

In order of priority:
Camera on NW corner facing SSW to cover the entire driveway
Camera on SE corner facing SW to cover your door and walkway
Camera where red line says backdoor, poining NW

With just three cams you now have over 200 degrees coverage and the trees cover most of the rest.

If you get a fourth cam I'd possibly put it on the SE corner looking N, this way you get patio door and also that dead spot area to the cop of the house. Or it looks at patio from the other side, covering SE of house where it is clear. Then you only have a dead spot at the NE side of the house. For complete coverage you actually will need 5 cams by the looks of it, though even just the first two would cover virtually all people who will enter your property, so the rest are just bonuses.

 

[GaretJax]

My take, you assume any strangers are coming from the south (if in this pic the top is north).

In order of priority:
Camera on NW corner facing SSW to cover the entire driveway
Camera on SE corner facing SW to cover your door and walkway
Camera where red line says backdoor, poining NW

With just three cams you now have over 200 degrees coverage and the trees cover most of the rest.

If you get a fourth cam I'd possibly put it on the SE corner looking N, this way you get patio door and also that dead spot area to the cop of the house. Or it looks at patio from the other side, covering SE of house where it is clear. Then you only have a dead spot at the NE side of the house. For complete coverage you actually will need 5 cams by the looks of it, though even just the first two would cover virtually all people who will enter your property, so the rest are just bonuses.

Thanks for the input.

Makes a lot of sense. Would all the cams be the same make and model or would there be different cams for different purposes?

 

[LittleBrother]

Thanks for the input.

Makes a lot of sense. Would all the cams be the same make and model or would there be different cams for different purposes?

I suppose I'll be lazy and just say buy 3MP Hikvision cams for all. I like the hikvision turrets No reason to swap makes or models. You may want different lens sizes: 2.8 mm on the hikvision 3MP cover about 90 degrees horizontally, whereas the 4mm covers maybe 70. I have a 4mm on my driveway because it's fairly long and thin and works great for that, but a porch cam has a 2.8 mm lens.

These all throw off decent IR light, but it won't work at far range. That's why your motion lights are great because you should be able to use the motion light in concert with the cams--possibly even having a cam with good motion light never switching to light mode (you'd need to test which works best).

 

[GaretJax]

I suppose I'll be lazy and just say buy 3MP Hikvision cams for all. I like the hikvision turrets No reason to swap makes or models. You may want different lens sizes: 2.8 mm on the hikvision 3MP cover about 90 degrees horizontally, whereas the 4mm covers maybe 70. I have a 4mm on my driveway because it's fairly long and thin and works great for that, but a porch cam has a 2.8 mm lens.

Thanks. Which of these is what you recommend:
DS-2CD2332
DS-2CD2132
DS-2CD2032

These all throw off decent IR light, but it won't work at far range. That's why your motion lights are great because you should be able to use the motion light in concert with the cams--possibly even having a cam with good motion light never switching to light mode (you'd need to test which works best).

In general should the light be installed above the camera or should the camera be installed above the light? How much distance should I leave between the two?

Thanks.

 

[Del Boy]

Hi GaretJax,

I would always recommend DS-2CD2332 over 2132 and 2032. The night image is better and they are less susceptible to IR issues and most importantly.... spiders!

Don't get 2.8mm unless it's a porch cam. You have so much space around your house you should be using 4mm in my opinion.

Light should be installed so that the camera can't see the source ideally. Doesn't have to be above and behind the camera, can come in from the side. Even street lamps provide decent light!

Hope that helps.

Del Boy

 

[GaretJax]

I am really confused now. I did a search at NewEgg for "DS-2CD2332" and got seemingly 10 versions of the same camera. They are all within $4-$5 of each other. Are they all the same camera just sold by different vendors (ala Amazon) or are there slight variations of the same cameras with different features?

 

[mycoma]

Use LTS, if you want a US Version with a 3yr warranty.

 

[Del Boy]

I am really confused now. I did a search at NewEgg for "DS-2CD2332" and got seemingly 10 versions of the same camera. They are all within $4-$5 of each other. Are they all the same camera just sold by different vendors (ala Amazon) or are there slight variations of the same cameras with different features?

There is only one variant for these (no SD cards or wifi etc). Just make sure it's the "DS-2CD2332-i"

 

[LittleBrother]

I am really confused now. I did a search at NewEgg for "DS-2CD2332" and got seemingly 10 versions of the same camera. They are all within $4-$5 of each other. Are they all the same camera just sold by different vendors (ala Amazon) or are there slight variations of the same cameras with different features?

Yeah it can be confusing. They are all more or less the same. I say more or less because there can be slight differences, such as whether the camera is USA region or China, which can affect availability of firmware. Also, I have three of the DS-2CD2332 cameras (I like them!) and one of them doesn't have a reset button (it was a china region I got off ebay). There are no fakes and all function essentially the same except for the aforementioned issues.

I echo mycoma's post. Go with that recommendation for a camera. His thread here: http://www.ipcamtalk.com/showthread.php/257-Good-source-to-buy-IP-items-at also his prices look great for July 2015.

His cams are rebranded hikvisions, so the firmware will say LTS security, but they are USA region and you can put USA firmware on them, at which point they will be hikvision branded (in the on-board software).

Don't bother with China. You can wait weeks and return shipping is a nightmare, plus the cams probably will be china-regioned. My orders from milkisbad shipped fast and I would definitely go back to them.

These cams are made in China, obviously, but although I buy these and I buy stuff for my other hobby that was made in China I now only buy from US-based vendors who've already spent the time and effort waiting for product. I just hate ordering things direct from China now.

 

[105437]

Use LTS, if you want a US Version with a 3yr warranty.

Couldn't agree more with what @mycoma said above. I looked all over Amazon, ebay and Ali. In the end it was worth it to pay a little extra to order from LTS to guarantee a western region (USA) camera and 3-year warranty. I ordered from @milkisbad and he was awesome to work with! He treated my two camera order like it was something much larger. Shipping was super fast and he was and still is great in responding to email queries etc.