CCTV Systems and Camera SelectionCamera

The choice of camera and lens are the most important factors when you’re designing CCTV systems for security. Choosing the right lens and camera will ensure that you get the most value from the CCTV camera that you choose. Let’s walk through the most important points in lens and security camera selection to help you design the best CCTV security system for your use.

CCTV Camera Lens Types

CCTV security cameras come in three basic lens types: fixed, varifocus and zoom.

A fixed lens can not be adjusted. It’s best for applications where you only want to survey from one angle and have no need to widen or narrow your viewing angle.

Varifocal lenses are adjusted manually. Generally, you’ll set it and leave it at that setting. The range of length is usually fairly narrow, and will vary widely depending on the security camera manufacturer. Generally, you’ll find lenses in ranges from about 2mm to 50mm.

Zoom lenses can be adjusted through the CCTV security system as you view the output on a monitor. You’ll generally find zoom lenses on Pan, Tilt and Zoom (PTZ) CCTV systems. To determine the size lens you need, you’ll need to know the width of the scene you want to observe and the distance from the camera to the scene. The basic calculation to decide the lens length is:

distance/width * 4.8 = focal length

In addition to focal length, your security camera will have any number of other adjustable settings, including back light compensation, auto iris, electronic shutter, automatic white balance and many others. Before you choose cameras for your CCTV systems, get to know what the settings do and decide which are important to you so that you can be sure to get a security camera that fits your needs.

CCTV System Information

Another one of the key differences among CCTV security system types is the way that the camera connects. Analog security camera CCTV systems are usually connected to the monitor by coax cable or another type of wire. For decades, analog systems were state of the art – and your only real choice. While they deliver high quality picture with no concerns about interruptions, they also require hard installation, generally by a professional who can run the wires. Once the cameras are installed, you ability to reposition them is very limited.

The more popular option today is an IP camera. An IP CCTV camera connects on a network, just as a PC or printer does. This provides a great deal of flexibility in positioning, because the cameras don’t have to be connected to the system by a wire.

Those are the absolute basic things you need to know when choosing among the many CCTV systems available. The more research you do, though, the better and more informed choice you can make and the better your choice will be for your needs.

CCTV Systems for Retail Security

Any retail business owner understands the problems of loss and shrinkage. Losses due to shoplifting, employee theft and employee mishandling can put a major dent in your bottom line.  Some retailers report losing up to 10 percent of their profits to shrinkage. While many retailers put the losses down to the cost of doing business, savvy business owners understand that CCTV systems and other security measures can shrink the shrinkage.

How CCTV Systems Improve Store Security

There are obvious benefits to using a CCTV system to help manage security in your store, as well as a few that are not as clear cut. If you’re deciding whether to install a surveillance camera in your retail space, these are a few of the considerations you should be taking into account.

In general, you have to count on your eyes and the eyes of your clerks to spot shoplifters, but there are often corners and out of the way spots that you can’t see at all times. A properly positioned CCTV camera puts eyes in places that you can’t generally see from behind the counter and allows you to serve your customers without compromising your store’s security.

While properly positioned mirrors can offer you part of the advantages of a surveillance camera, the mirror has one serious drawback. It can’t record what it sees. The recording can provide evidence in a court case if you choose to prosecute a shoplifter, but its usefulness extends further than that if you take the time to look over the surveillance tapes or files. Even with CCTV cameras, you might miss suspicious activity while you’re serving another customer. The retained tape, disk or file allows you to take a second look and alerts you to “customers” that need closer supervision.

No one likes to believe that his employees are stealing from him, but loss to employee theft is a major cause of shrinkage. In addition to theft, retail stores often lose profits to employees who aren’t paying attention, who make mistakes and who mishandle merchandise that later spoils. CCTV systems can be set up to allow you to observe your employees’ behavior when you’re out of sight or out of the store. Keep in mind that employee surveillance can also be used to exonerate your employees of wrong-doing, especially if a customer charges your store with misbehavior.

If you’re considering CCTV systems to enhance your store’s security, be sure to check out the newest advances in surveillance technology before you make your decision. You’ll be surprised how much security you can afford.

Pros and Cons of CCTV Systems for Workplace Monitoring

While most people think of video surveillance as a method to protect a business against burglary and shoplifting, CCTV systems also give employers the ability to more effectively monitor employees at work. There are multiple advantages and a few negatives to using CCTV systems this way. If you’re considering setting up a CCTV monitoring system in your workplace, you should fully understand both the benefits and the potential effects of using security systems to monitor your employees’ performance and behavior.

Pros of CCTV Systems in the Workplace

The pros of setting up a surveillance camera system to monitor the workplace are many. They include increased safety, decreased shrinkage, increased good behavior and evidence if there is a crime.

The main purpose of a CCTV camera system is to increase safety in the workplace. The mere presence of surveillance cameras can help discourage outside theft, which is especially important in retail businesses that are open late at night, often with only one attendant to cover the entire store. It can also discourage unsafe behaviors by employees, and actually provide protection for employees from being exploited, harassed or otherwise abused by supervisors and other employees. A manager or supervisor is much more likely to observe safety rules if they know they’re being monitored.

CCTV systems are proven methods of decreasing shoplifting, but they also can save your business hundreds of dollars a month in the form of employee theft. Employees may not even consider their actions to be “theft,” but it’s still costing you money when they snack on a candy bar, draw themselves a drink from the coffee bar without paying for it or pour a little extra into a drink for a friend. An employee monitoring system can help you pick up on those behaviors if they’re happening so that you can decide on a course of action to take.

As suggested before, the knowledge that they are being monitored will often prompt employees to engage in the behaviors you want. Employees are also much less likely to engage in inappropriate behaviors when they know that there’s a security camera watching them.

Finally, CCTV systems provide evidence if you need to discipline or dismiss someone based on their behaviors. It’s much more difficult to dispute a dismissal that is backed up by video evidence of the employee stealing, mistreating customers or otherwise misbehaving in a professional situation.

If you do decide to implement video monitoring with CCTV systems in your workplace, implement it in such a way as to counter any negatives associated with employee monitoring. Those include potential invasion of privacy issues and lowered morale if employees feel that you don’t trust them. When you consider all the pros and cons carefully, and carefully evaluate the video monitoring needs of your business, you’ll be in a position to make the best decision for your company.

Pros and Cons of CCTV Systems for Workplace Monitoring

While most people think of video surveillance as a method to protect a business against burglary and shoplifting, CCTV systems also give employers the ability to more effectively monitor employees at work. There are multiple advantages and a few negatives to using CCTV systems this way. If you’re considering setting up a CCTV monitoring system in your workplace, you should fully understand both the benefits and the potential effects of using security systems to monitor your employees’ performance and behavior.

Pros of CCTV Systems in the Workplace

The pros of setting up a surveillance camera system to monitor the workplace are many. They include increased safety, decreased shrinkage, increased good behavior and evidence if there is a crime.

The main purpose of CCTV systems is to increase safety in the workplace. The mere presence of surveillance cameras can help discourage outside theft, which is especially important in retail businesses that are open late at night, often with only one attendant to cover the entire store. It can also discourage unsafe behaviors by employees, and actually provide protection for employees from being exploited, harassed or otherwise abused by supervisors and other employees. A manager or supervisor is much more likely to observe safety rules if they know they’re being monitored.

CCTV systems are proven methods of decreasing shoplifting, but they also can save your business hundreds of dollars a month in the form of employee theft. Employees may not even consider their actions to be “theft,” but it’s still costing you money when they snack on a candy bar, draw themselves a drink from the coffee bar without paying for it or pour a little extra into a drink for a friend. An employee monitoring system can help you pick up on those behaviors if they’re happening so that you can decide on a course of action to take.

As suggested before, the knowledge that they are being monitored will often prompt employees to engage in the behaviors you want. Employees are also much less likely to engage in inappropriate behaviors when they know that there’s a security camera watching them.

Finally, CCTV systems provide evidence if you need to discipline or dismiss someone based on their behaviors. It’s much more difficult to dispute a dismissal that is backed up by video evidence of the employee stealing, mistreating customers or otherwise misbehaving in a professional situation.

If you do decide to implement video monitoring with CCTV systems in your workplace, implement it in such a way as to counter any negatives associated with employee monitoring. Those include potential invasion of privacy issues and lowered morale if employees feel that you don’t trust them. When you consider all the pros and cons carefully, and carefully evaluate the video monitoring needs of your business, you’ll be in a position to make the best decision for your company.

Enhance Home Safety with CCTV Systems

You can’t always be at home with eyes in every room, but that doesn’t mean you can’t see what’s happening when you’re not there. Technology advances have made it possible for almost anyone to afford CCTV systems to help monitor their homes and ensure the safety of their families. With the many options available today, you can easily design a CCTV system that will suit your security needs and your pocketbook perfectly.

Why CCTV Systems for Home Safety?

People choose CCTV systems for many reasons and purposes. For some, a security camera at the front entrance gives an added sense of security and helps them maintain the privacy and safety of their homes because they can see who is approaching their property. Others use a CCTV system to monitor the home while they’re out and allow them to check in on things from a work computer. A video camera hooked up to a monitor and a PC can reassure parents that their children are being cared for well, for example. A surveillance camera overlooking areas that can’t be easily seen from the house can allow homeowners to keep a closer eye on those areas.

Types of CCTV Systems

There are many types of systems available. They may include black and white or color security systems, wireless security cameras or a vandal resistant surveillance camera for cameras that will be mounted outdoors. Some systems allow remote access and can be used as home surveillance cameras hooked into a home security system. The most basic CCTV system is a single security camera hooked into a VCR or monitor for remote viewing. The most modern CCTV systems include multiple cameras that you can position and adjust from a remote location, giving you full control over your CCTV system even when you’re at work.

While many security cameras can hook into your computer, you can also purchase monitors as part of your home security system. Security monitors for CCTV systems may have double the lines of screen resolution as regular televisions or computer monitors, allowing the system to capture far greater detail, which can be vital if you’re counting on the system as part of your home security solution.

Advantages of CCTV for Home Security

CCTV security systems are a relatively inexpensive addition to your home security system. The cameras and monitors setup give you “eyes” so that you can keep an eye on kids at home after school, nannies with infants or simply keep a watch for intruders. Even if your system can’t be viewed remotely, it can record what happens throughout the day, which can be invaluable in helping to find and convict intruders if your home is burglarized.

For more information about the latest trends in CCTV systems and home security, contact a dealer of security cameras and monitors to discuss your needs.

CCTV Systems Security Tips

CCTV systems can play a major role in keeping your home and business properties secure, but they’re no substitute for good, all-around security. Even if you invest in a top-notch CCTV camera and monitoring system, you’re only partly protected if you don’t take your safety seriously. These tips can help you provide the safest environment possible for your family and your business.

Secure Your Property Properly

Door and window locks are a vital part of your security. Every door and window should have high quality locks. Of course, locks only work if you remember to use them!  Always make sure that your doors and windows are closed and locked. CCTV security cameras at the entrances to your home or positions so that they can provide surveillance for approaches to your home can help increase your security.

Choose the Right CCTV Cameras

There are many types of security cameras available. If you’re expecting your cameras to capture activity after dark, invest in day/night cameras which will automatically adjust their mode to take clear pictures in every light level.

Provide Proper Lighting

Lighting your property properly can increase both safety and security. Install exterior security lights at a high level, and point them downwards to provide lighting over more area. Place lights where they’ll illuminate dark corners and provide lighting for entry ways, walkways and stairways so that guests and visitors can see where they’re going, and you can see who’s coming.

Alert Neighbors If You’ll Be Away

Your neighbors can be your best protectors, especially if you’re away during the day or off on a holiday. Let them know when you’ll be away or the hours that you’re generally not at home and leave them a phone number where you can be reached if they notice something unusual.

Invest in a Real CCTV System

Dummy cameras and fake alarm boxes won’t fool burglars as much as they fool you into thinking you’re protected. Most alarm monitoring companies don’t allow anyone other than customers to display their security tags, and professional thieves know which companies operate in the area. They won’t be fooled by a fake camera and a sign declaring your property is monitored by ABC Alarm Systems.

Instead, look into budget options for CCTV systems to protect your home and property. Depending on your needs, you may find that a closed circuit system to protect your family and property is far less expensive than you think.

How to Use CCTV Systems Effectively

Security systems based on closed circuit television, often abbreviated CCTV, are an effective way to monitor your home or business and ensure the safety of your employees, family and customers. You can choose CCTV systems in many different price ranges, depending on the options you choose for your security system. You can customize your security system to suit your needs and provide more coverage and security, often without compromising privacy. The only limit is the amount that you’re willing to pay for the benefits of a closed circuit system.

CCTV includes monitoring equipment, cameras and recording devices put together in varying configurations. The most elaborate systems can cover every square inch of your property and allow you to monitor it 24/7 via wireless cameras, banks of color monitors and digital recorders that save every moment of coverage. Few people need that level of security coverage for their business or home. How do you decide where and how to deploy your security system?

One of the first steps in choosing the best CCTV security system for you is determining your minimum needs. At the very least, you’ll want a camera set to monitor the main entry points to your property, though ideally, you should place a camera at each entry point, including emergency exits and loading docks. If you have a parking area, you should also consider a camera there to ensure that your employees have a safe, monitored area to park their cars, and that the parking area doesn’t become a gathering place for mischief makers.

Finally, many employers place cameras where they can monitor cash registers or other points of sale, as well as any part of a retail establishment that can’t be seen and monitored by clerks from their usual station.

In addition to cameras, you need to decide on the monitoring equipment you need. A small corner store may be fully served by a single monitor mounted where the clerk on duty can keep an eye on the back door and parking lot. If you set the cameras to cycle on a loop, one person can have an eye on all of your sensitive areas every two to five minutes. Larger establishments with more complex needs may invest in an entire monitoring room with one or more employees whose only responsibility is to monitor the feeds from the cameras.

CCTV systems are a great boon for any business or home owner who is serious about security, but it’s important to know what you need and what’s available. Do your research and a full evaluation of your security needs before you shop and you’ll be sure to get the best system for your specific needs.