CCTV systems keep your eyes everywhere

If you run an entertainment venue, you know how hard it can be to have eyes on everything that might happen. CCTV systems are among the best ways to put more eyes in areas that need the most surveillance. Choosing the right surveillance camera, monitor and recording options for your CCTV systems can be confusing unless you plan out your needs ahead of time. When you know what you expect from your CCTV system, you can choose the features you want and need.

How Many Areas?

The first thing you need to decide is how many security cameras you’ll need based on the number and size of the areas you need to cover. Think strategically. Ideally, you’d be able to provide total surveillance camera coverage of your entire club (with the exception of those areas the law prohibits you from placing surveillance cameras), but few small businesses can manage total coverage under their budgets. If you need to pick and choose, figure out the areas where trouble is most likely to start and prioritize them for a CCTV camera. Once you know how many cameras you’ll need, you can start looking at receivers.

Choosing a Receiver

Most small businesses today choose PC-based CCTV systems because they can provide a lot of storage space, but DVR-based systems are also popular. Decide how much surveillance footage you want to store and choose a recording method that offers the best solution. Keep in mind that DVR disks occupy far less space than videotapes, and hard drive storage – while limited – can be the best solution of all if your storage space is extremely limited. Consider backup methods, and of course, choose a display or receiver that can handle input from the number of cameras you’ve decided you need.

Resolution and Light

In a performance or entertainment venue, you’ll probably want to choose CCTV camera options with low light or IR recording capabilities. Beyond that, you’ll need to strike a balance between the amount of resolution you need and the size of the files you’ll be saving. Higher resolution gives you more detail, which can be important in your business. On the other hand, high resolution generates very large surveillance files.

Don’t forget to include your outdoor areas when deciding on the number of cameras your CCTV system should have. If you have a parking lot for patrons, it can easily become a magnet for dangerous and even illegal behaviors if you don’t provide a surveillance camera. Finally, if your venue checks IDs at the door, consider CCTV systems that allow you to store still photographs alongside your video data. Capturing ID information at the door can provide proof that your doormen are adequately checking identification if you ever face a challenge to your policies.