What are the different types of CCTV cameras
Video transcript:
Hi, I’m Buzz Coates, Norbain’s Security Solutions Specialist
and today I'm going to talk to you about the types of cameras
that you could use on a CCTV system.
Obviously, there are lots of cameras on the market,
but we're only really going to concentrate on the ones that are typically used.
That is going to be cameras like bullet cameras, fixed dome cameras,
vandal resistant cameras, and PTZ.
This video is not going to cover the specialist cameras like ANPR,
or intrinsically safe explosion proof cameras, thermal, etc, etc,
because they are rather specialist
and at basic level, we're not really going to go discuss those today.
Before we decide on what type of camera there is to choose from,
we need to understand the cameras role.
What is it doing? Where is it going to be placed?
Is there any peripheral equipment going to be applied to it?
But also from a point of view of what are we trying to view?
Why are we trying to view that?
It may well be we want to see a very wide area,
or it may be something that we want to just concentrate on a door
and just get head and shoulders.
As you can appreciate, the view is very, very different.
We are going from something which is like that,
to like that.
So in order to cover those areas of different options,
we need to understand what the lens is
and what the resolution is that is required.
The lens basically comes in three basic standards,
and that is fixed lens, Verifocal lens, or an optical zoom lens.
Traditionally, if we go back 20 odd years, we used to mainly use Box cameras
and we'd used to have a specific lens for that role.
But typically, it's a lot easier nowadays,
because most cameras that we sell in this arena,
will be lenses included in the camera.
To understand how the lens and camera go together,
we typically give a measurement in millimetres,
the distance between the lens and the sensor in the camera.
ie for example, three millimetres
and that is the small distance in between, like I say,
the sensor and the optics of the lens.
And what will happen there, just as a very simple system to understand
is that if I'm at three mil, I'm going to see a very wide area,
the narrower I become, I'm going to see less and less and less.
So if I've got a general observation area that I'm trying to cover
like a car park, or something like that,
I'm going to choose a very small distance from the lens to the sensor.
So say 3mm - that's going to give me a very wide view.
The narrower I become, I'm going to actually see
or the higher the distance - 50mm - I'm going to see less.
Which means I lose things either side, the narrower I become.
Fixed lens basically means what you see is what you get.
And they come in various sizes.
So I can get lenses at 3mm, 6mm, 9mm, 10mm, etc, etc, etc.
But if I make a mistake, I have to get another camera,
especially if I'm using products like bullet cameras
and dome cameras with built in lenses.
If I get the wrong lens there, I'm going to have to change the camera
to put in a another type of camera with a different lens.
And that's the joy of using a varifocal lens,
a varifocal lens gives you an option
of being able to change what you're looking at when you're setting up.
So you could have a varifocal that is typically 2.8 to 12mm.
So if you're unsure of the site, and what it's going to be needing,
you can get a varifocal lens -
it costs a little bit more - but the fact is it gives you that understanding
of being able to change a scene if you need.
And the good news about varifocal lenses nowadays,
most of those can be done remotely.
So if you want to just go and put the camera up, and then change the view,
you can do that remotely over the network.
So we tend to use varifocals as a safe bet,
it might well be that you want to target an area,
ie, you could have a door which is the important door into a building
and you want to capture head and shoulders.
And the last lens we're going to talk about is an optical zoom lens.
Now typically these come in optical zooms of maybe
10 times, 15 times, 25 times, 30 times zoom lenses.
And typically we see those in PTZs - Pan Tilt Zoom cameras -
not always, because you can get them in bullets as well.
But typically what we're looking at there
is someone who's probably driving the system manually,
or you're having something like detectors go off outside
where you want the PTZ to go to a preset to zoom into an area.
But a bit like the varifocal, once you zoom right in,
you're not seeing things either side.
So if you are worried about compromising your security,
it may well be that you combine the PTZ with a fixed view camera,
still keeping the overview.
Another important factor when choosing a camera
is obviously the resolution.
Now, most stuff that we put in nowadays tends to be at least 1080 HD,
but we can go up to 4k cameras, etc, etc.
And obviously most people will think, rightly or wrongly,
that the more resolution that you have, the better the images are going to be.
And that's not necessarily true.
from a point of view of enhancing digital steps, you will be absolutely right.
whereby if you're taking a 4k image over a 1080 image,
you can obviously go further, further, further in, in order in digital zoom,
in order to make sure that the picture holds up.
A 4k will last a lot longer before it pixelates than a 1080 HD.
However, though, it can be argued, if you're using the right optics,
with resolution, actually, you don't need so much resolution.
And what I mean by that is, if you think we're using a PTZ
with a 30 times optical zoom
I could quite easily use a 1080 HD because the picture is just going to hold up.
with that resolution, every time I step in using optically
If however, though, I'm using just a 2.8 fixed mm lens,
you can appreciate that I probably want more resolution.
if I'm going to use digital zoom to step in.
But please note, it's not Hollywood, we can't enhance, enhance, enhance,
in order to make a rubbish picture look great.
And please note there is a lot more to choosing the camera than just the lens.
And the resolution placement comes into fact as well,
but also, we will be covering that in the later video.
The one thing we have to be careful of resolution though
is the higher in resolution that you go, the more sensitive they are to light.
In other words, they need more light.
So once we have a good understanding of what the cameras role is,
we can then choose what is the right camera from there on.
Now it could well be you'd like an overt camera where people see a camera
and know they're being recorded.
Or you could go covert
where you don't want people to know that being recorded.
Traditionally, if you go back 20 odd years, as I said before,
we used the fixed box cameras,
And box cameras typically had to go with a lens.
And we only really see those used nowadays
where we're trying to see quite far distances
where we put a big zoom lens on.
So like ports and things like that.
But typically nowadays, we've moved on to what would be
integrated cameras and lenses in the form of fixed domes.
Now fixed domes come in a variety of shapes and sizes.
You have the traditional dome that's got the bubble that's built in.
And then we move on to what is the flat faced domes,
whereby you've got a eyeball or a turret.
Now typically these come in fixed, varifocal lenses,
they can be vandal resistant.
Some of them come with built in infrared,
or IR as we're going to call it from now on.
And in IP, you tend to find that they are either PoE, or 12VDC.
But obviously within analogue, they would still be the 12V or 24V.
So when choosing the right fixed dome,
you have to understand yet that it's going to be internal or external.
Don't always think that internal cameras are non-vandal resistant,
because sometimes in schools and places like that,
we do insist on vandal resistant cameras being fitted.
And obviously for external, we need to make sure
that the Ingress Protection is correct - ie. IP65, 66, 67,
means it can go outside and waterproof,
providing of course that it is installed correctly.
And just to be clear, we do have problems sometimes
when we do use eyeball cameras.
And that is when fitted externally, the infrared or IR light
does make quite a nice warmth.
And that can mean that spiders and insects are attracted to the camera.
The one way around that is to use a turret
because typically with a turret dome, the sensor and the IR light are separate,
so that if they actually just filled the IR light,
at least it's not going to block your view from the sensor itself.
One family of cameras that does come under fixed domes
is the fisheye cameras or 360 degree cameras.
Whereby we stick those on the ceiling
and they give you a really good general observation of an area.
Take in retail, where typically cameras were installed to look down the aisles,
we can stick a camera up in the ceiling above the aisles
and then we have no hidden area.
And then we have bullet cameras.
Typically used externally because that's what their focus is.
because typically they come with a sunshield,
whereby if you're facing into the sun,
you can move those sunshield further along the cylindrical base.
And that means you can stop glare from sunlight if you're facing south.
Again, just like fixed domes, they come with varieties of lenses -
you can have a fixed lens, you can have a varifocal lens
And you can also, in this case, sometimes have an optical zoom lens as well.
And typically what we see with bullet cameras,
they also have infrared or IR lighting.
And again, they can suffer the same problems with the fixed cameras as well,
whereby spiders, insects are attracted to that ring around a bullet camera,
and that can obscure your view.
And finally, in this series, we're going to talk about pan tilt zoom cameras,
which I'm going to refer to as PTZs from now on,
because that's quite a mouthful.
And typically, where we see PTZs being used,
is where someone wants to track an individual or track an object.
But again, as I've said before, no point in having one of these
if you haven't got someone who manually is operating the system,
or you're not using detectors or analytics on cameras,
in order to drive a PTZ to a particular point of interest,
or to make it go to a preset, as is most commonly known.
But PTZs do have their value.
They are quite useful for zooming into an area of interest.
It might well be you want to capture someone at the perimeter,
some 100, 125 metres away
and then you come back to the home position,
where you get a nice wide view.
But obviously, if you're zooming in, you can't see either side.
So again, if you don't want to compromise your security system,
the ideal thing to do would be to have a fixed camera backing up the PTZ
when you are zooming in.
It's really important to understand when you're using PTZs,
The PTZ features are all supported by the NVR or VMS that you are using.
And by VMS, I mean a Video Management System.
Not all PTZs are all the same.
Some come with IR and white light. Some come with wipers.
Some come with IR, some don't.
So you really have to take some time
to make sure that you are choosing the right camera
for the job that you're trying to cover.
So if you want to find out more,
give us a shout or head to Norbain TV on YouTube.
If you enjoyed this video we've also got one on choosing between IP or analogue CCTV.