1.  Reason to Buy a Video Surveillance Camera System

From a single camera and monitor to complex video surveillance systems with hundreds of security cameras, multiple operators, and digital recorders, closed circuit television (CCTV) systems can provide security for a wide range of businesses.

A good video surveillance system can make your business safer, more efficient, and less prone to theft and accidents. Specifically, video surveillance can provide many benefits:

•   Reduce profit loss by Catching Shoplifters
•   Deter Potential Thieves
•   Monitor Cash Registers
•   Record Evidence to Prevent Bogus Accident Claims
•   Identify Visitors And Employees
•   Monitor Hazardous Work Areas
•   Increase Security in and around Business
•   Meet Insurance Requirements 

2.  The Benefit of a Security Surveillance System

Theft of Merchandise and Services by Employees

Protects Valuable Assets

Reduction in Loss of Profit

Increase of Employee’s Productivity

Reduces Lateness and Early Departures

Limits Liability and Compensation

Monitor Customer Service

Ensures Safety and Protection

3.  How to purchase a video surveillance system

Whether you are a business owner, in charge of a parking garage or storage yard, or simply want to be able to see the sales floor from the back room, the decision to purchase a video surveillance system is one that can give you peace of mind, as well as make sure your customers, staff and property are as safe as can be.

4.  How will surveillance equipment benefit my business

There are numerous ways that a good video surveillance system can benefit your business. From enabling safer monitoring of your parking lot or other hazardous areas of your business, to making customers feel safer and potential shoplifters anxious, surveillance equipment is a good investment. For some businesses, insurance requirements mandate surveillance cameras, while for other businesses, the purchase of a video surveillance system is just the right thing to do

5.  Selecting The Right Surveillance Cameras

When you run a closed-circuit television (CCTV) system for your business, the type of CCTV cameras you choose will have an enormous impact on the quality of the images you obtain.

Modern technology has provided a wide range of cameras to choose from, each intended for a specific purpose. For example, you may want to use a different camera for surveillance at a retail store than for security in front of an office building, home, church etc.

6.  Types of Surveillance Cameras

Bullet style cameras are arguably the most popular for CCTV systems, likely since they're the most versatile. They can be placed inside or outdoors. Some CCTV cameras are even capable of working under water. Many cameras have adjustable bases so they can be placed on ceilings, floors, walls and other hard-to-reach places.

Dome cameras are also popular, especially if your CCTV system requires overhead surveillance. The dome camera is spherical with a clear plastic head that allows the tiny camera to swivel continuously and view a wide area. Speed dome cameras are similar to standard domes, though speed domes offer maximum range of motion with their pan and tilt features as well as higher quality video.

If you would like to install CCTV cameras without the public knowing they're around, pinhole cameras are probably your best bet. They can be installed anywhere. Although the shaft is often long and square, the camera can be mounted behind a "pinhole" so the camera itself isn't visible. They do, however, restrict range of motion since the camera cannot move behind its barrier.

PTZ (pan, tilt, zoom) cameras are ideal for situations in which you need maximum control over your viewing area. As its name suggests, the PTZ camera allows the equipment to pan, tilt, and zoom

Note : Always Avoid Dummy Cameras. While they may deter some problems, they also can create a legal liability by creating an false expectation of safety when none exists.

7.  What Are The Most Important CCTV Products

The four most important pieces of surveillance camera equipment are, Camera, Lens, Recorder (DVR), and Monitor. These devices are the central components that make your system work and needs to be compatible with the rest of the system. Cameras record footage, the lens determines your focus and clarity, DVRs store the footage for future playback, and the monitor displays the footage

8.  Choosing CCTV Lenses

The lenses you select for your CCTV system will depend on several factors. First, the focal length will play a large role in the angle of view provided by your cameras. The larger the size, the narrower the angle of view. For example, a 16mm lens will have a narrower view than a 12mm lens.

The focal length directly impacts the depth of field, which is the second consideration. When you have a high depth of field, most of the area your camera covers will be in good focus for viewing. CCTV lenses with a low depth of field produce poorer image quality which will make much of your picture appear to be out of focus.

The basic technology behind most surveillance cameras is the Charge Coupled Device (CCD). CCDs convert the images that come through the camera's lens into electronic impulses. CCDs provide a good combination of low price and quality picture for security applications.

Camera formats are measured in inches.  most surveillance cameras fall between 1/4" and 1". This refers to the usable image size created inside the camera. For most security use, a small size is fine - 1/4" or 1/3" cameras dominate CCTV sales. Larger formats do not necessarily result in better images, but can be advantageous in dimly lit situations since they are able to gather more light.

Many newer surveillance cameras use digital signal processing (DSP) to convert the analog video stream to digital information, improving picture quality and to adding functionality. The DSP circuit in a camera can have a very large effect on the quality of the images.

As with regular cameras, the lens on a surveillance camera determines how wide an image is created and how much light is let in. Lenses are sometimes  sold separately for cameras.

The lens you purchase should match the format of your camera. A 1/4" lenses work best with a 1/4" cameras. It is possible to use a larger format lens than the camera calls for, but it is not recommended.

You also need to decide what type of lens you need. Fixed focal length lenses offer only one set field of view and are the least costly. To change the resulting image, you need to switch lenses.

Variable focal length lenses and zoom lenses offer greater flexibility, allowing you to adjust your image's field of view. Motorized zoom lenses are the most costly type available, they give you the ability to control your surveillance cameras remotely. If you want to zoom out for general surveillance and in for detail when you spot suspicious activity.

A lens with an automatic iris. Automatic iris can significantly improve a camera performance, where light levels vary considerably. As in the human eye, the iris of a lens is what controls the amount of light coming in to the camera.  

9.  What Is Signal To Noise Ratio

Signal to Noise indicates how much "signal," or actual picture information, the camera transmits, as opposed to "noise," which comes across as static. An s/n ratio of 40db indicates that the signal is 100 times the noise, which results in an acceptable picture with some fine grain or snow. 30db results in a poor picture, and 60db produces an excellent picture with no static visible. Keep in mind that noise can be introduced by other components in addition to the camera.

10.  What is a Lux

Sensitivity to light is measured in lux. A sensitivity of 2 lux means the camera can see fairly well by the light of a 40W fluorescent bulb; 0.5 lux surveillance cameras can make out images outside on a dim night. Your needs will depend on the lighting in the area being filmed.

11.  How Important is Resolution

Resolution refers to how detailed a picture the camera can see. The measurement to look for is horizontal TV lines (TVL). A normal surveillance camera picture is around 350 to 400 TVL, with high resolution getting up to 600 or 700. Upgrading a camera's resolution is always recommended the cost often times can be minimal

12.  What are PTZ Camera

Pan, Tilt, Zoom. For advanced security applications, you may want a pan, tilt, and zoom (PTZ) camera. With the right equipment, a camera operator can pan, scan left and right, tilt, look up and down, and zoom in and out on an object. The significant catch is the cost: PTZ systems are considerably more expensive than fixed cameras.

13.  Are Camera Housings Important

Cameras may need to be protected from potential vandalism or from the elements. Housings can range from simple coverings, to impact-resistant protection, to outdoor housings that include heaters and blowers for cooling. A more specialized type of housing is the dome: tinted Plexiglas hemispheres that prevent subjects from seeing which direction a camera is pointing. Choose the right housing based on the placement of the surveillance camera and its expected usage.

14.  Choosing Monitors For Surveillance Systems

Selecting a monitor for your surveillance system is a relatively minor decision, but there are a couple of important points to keep in mind.

Flat-panel LCD screens make great surveillance system monitors because they take up little space, have excellent resolution, and generate less heat than regular monitors.

Make sure your monitor resolution matches your cameras. Buy a monitor with lower resolution and your camera's capabilities will not come through. Buy one with higher resolution is a better choice.

A 17” inch15" monitor is the smallest you should choose if you plan to combine images from multiple cameras onto one monitor.

15.  Digital Video Recorders (DVR) Functions

Video Security Systems DVRs can review images while recording at the same time. The DVR can be set to take one picture per second or less - just enough to create a running record. However when it detects motion, it can automatically bump the recording speed up to full (30 frames per second), getting every detail of the unauthorized activity.

Instead of fast-forwarding through hours of tape, DVRs can instantly retrieve images from any specific time or date, or automatically skip to the point on a recording when something changed.

You can select how much quality you need out of your recorder. Decide how "good" the recorded picture needs to be, either for your own use later or possibly to use in court. Once you decide this, you will be able to determine  which DVR meet your needs.

The size of the hard drive in the DVR will dictate how much video you can record. On the low end, an 80-gigabyte (GB) hardrive will store about five to eight days of full-motion video from one camera. For most homeowners and businesses, spending a little extra to get 500 GB to 2 terabytes which can store many cameras' worth of data for long periods of time. It is also a worthwhile investment. Hardrive expandability are limitless, it just depends on how much data you want to record and save.

You will also need to consider how many cameras you want to connect to the DVR. Keep your future expansion needs in mind - buying a higher-grade model to get more inputs and more storage space can save you considerable money in the future.

16.  Wireless Systems

In most cases, wireless for video surveillance systems are not recommended.  However there are situations where wireless is the way to go: Connecting across a public street, for example, where digging a trench is not a practical solution. Wireless systems are also better suited for rural areas, where there are fewer potential sources of interference. In these cases, wireless transmitters can make expensive or potentially impossible installations feasible.

Installation of wireless systems requires specific expertise to diagnose problems and fine-tune the setup. Ensure that your security or surveillance camera installer are experienced with wireless setups and configuration  if  this is your choice.

17.  Video Security System Pricing

There are many components to video security systems: cameras, monitors, recorders, and cabling to connect the system. Add in the need for a quality installation, and it should be apparent that shopping by price alone is not a good approach. . This depends quite a bit on the types of hardware you choose, the location and set up required. It is always best to get a on-site evaluation from a qualified professional

18.  What are IP Cameras

Otherwise known as an Internet protocol (IP) camera, Internet security cameras are one of the most common types of digital video cameras used for surveillance. Unlike CCTV cameras which use an analog signal, IP cameras can send and receive data via a computer network as well as the Internet.

There are two main types of IP cameras in circulation – centralized cameras which require a network video recorder (NVR) to handle recording, video and alarms; and a decentralized IP camera which has recording function built-in and can record directly to a variety of storage devices.

IP cameras use an IP video surveillance system to monitor, record, and transmit video footage from a specific location. The difference between an IP security camera and standard CCTV is that IP is transmitted over the Internet, often using wireless broadband technology. It can be managed from a remote location to observe several premises at once.

The camera itself is a stand-alone piece of equipment that transfers captured images to your Web browser. This means the technology operates over the Web rather than closed-circuit television. Many of these devices include onboard processors and Internet software that's compatible with the equipment at central monitoring stations which permits a seamless transfer of data.

19.  What are the Benefits of IP  Cameras

The major benefit of using IP cameras for your video surveillance is the enhanced security. They often operate with a wireless connection and are equipped with high tech encryption devices that make them less vulnerable. In addition, while analog cameras often experienced interference, IP devices don't have the same problem.

For businesses that would prefer not to use wireless systems, the benefits of IP cameras still extend to installation. Since the IP video surveillance system is based on the same wiring as your Internet connection, you can use your existing wiring to install the equipment. This reduces your up-front costs and compatibility issues.

Also, using IP cameras mean you don't have to worry about monitoring your business from just one location. Since the data is transferred via the Internet, you can view the video feed from just about anywhere in the world. This is extremely beneficial if you have multiple business locations but don't want to create a security monitoring center for each.

20.  What are the Drawbacks IP Cameras

Unfortunately, modern technology does not solve every problem. Price and compatibility are two of the downsides to owning this type of equipment. For one thing, IP cameras are more expensive than their analog counterparts. They also absorb more bandwidth than other types of cameras, so you will have to make allowances as you create your system.

You will also discover that compatibility and selection will likely suffer until the IP networks become standardized. You can find a greater number of analog camera models meaning that you might have difficulty finding the exact IP camera you need for your business. Furthermore, you might encounter some compatibility problems if you are integrating these cameras into an existing system.

21.  What Can Many Cameras Do

Many motion sensor cameras on the market may be too basic for your needs. Some of them are not able to respond to certain motions, such as a cat crossing a room, or a change in the amount of light available (such as transitions between day/night). Some of the features you should consider for your camera are the following:

22.  Facial Recognition 

Many cameras these days, combined with facial recognition software, are able to instantly process an image of the person who is being viewed and determine if they are allowed access to the site or not; in addition to this, when a face is recognized (or not) certain actions can be performed by the software attached to your camera, such as email/cell phone notifications for intrusion, unlocking of doors based on verified access, etc.

23.  Advanced Motion Detection 

This is especially important if you have a motion activated camera set up outside or if you leave your pets at home, such as cats; a camera needs to be able to tell the difference between a human-sized intruder and an urban animal

24.  Changes In Light

Day/Night cycles can be important to determine preset actions, such as lights turning on, doors locking, gates locking and so on; picking a camera with these capabilities and additionally, infrared functions will allow you to use them 24 hours a day

25.  Advanced Pixel Detection 

Many cameras that use pixel technology to trigger image-based events are not definitive enough to detect changes in light or movements that are too rapid, such as birds and cats; you should aim for a camera program that lets you calibrate its pixel detection and customize it to your own situation

The most basic CCTV setup would be a single commercial security camera connected directly to a monitor and a recorder to store the video. While a setup like this could help security in some cases, it is unlikely to be enough for most application. Most situations call for multiple cameras. In some cases, you may even want a PTZ camera to cover a larger area.

26.  Evaluating Your CCTV Needs

Storage quality- DVR recordings have no degradation at all since they are stored onto a hard drive.

Multitasking- DVRs can record and playback at the same time, letting you review images while still recording. DVRs, can record for weeks or even months.

Smart monitoring- The DVR can be set to take one picture per second or less - just enough to create a running record. However when it detects motion, it can automatically bump the recording speed up to full (30 frames per second), getting every detail of the unauthorized activity.

The overall success of your CCTV system can hinge on the expertise of the installers. There are many important factors to take into consideration that require an expert understanding of lighting, optics, wiring, security, and more.

In other words, your experience connecting your home TV to the DVD player does not mean you should set up your business security system.

The quality security installation can have lasting effects on your home or business. As Qualified Professional Installers we will not take a standardized approach to installation.  

We will always analyze your needs and make sure you get a system that is customized to your location and business or institution

We will also provide you with enough training and documentation to make sure you and your family or staffs fully understands the operation and maintenance of your system.

In the Security Industry, Integrators and Dealers work with multiple manufacturers to offer a range of products, as well as installation and support that fit our customer needs.