Infrared Camera Buying AdviceAn
infrared camera has infrared LED lighting installed around the
outside of the lens of the camera. This lighting enables the
camera to capture a good image in little or no light condition
at all. With a little bit of light (usually called low light)
the infrared camera can capture a picture that looks just like
bright daytime. People use infrared security cameras for
businesses property that have the lights out at night (in case
of break-ins). Or people could use it for the exterior side of
a house for nighttime security viewing. At night, there is
still some light from the moon, star, or streetlight. With an
infrared security camera, you will stay safe at home.
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Infrared cameras are sometimes called "Night Vision" cameras
because they can see things at night. However, do not mix night
vision camera up with day / night cameras. Day / Night cameras do
not have infrared lights built in. Infrared security cameras will
provide a color picture while the light is good. When it gets dark,
the camera will switch to infrared mode and illuminate its built-in
infrared LEDs. In infrared mode, the image is captured in black and
white - this is true of all infrared cameras. The level of light
required to capture a good picture is referred to as a camera's lux,
the lower the lux the better the camera can see in low light. For
example a camera with 0.003 lux is better than a camera with 0.2
lux. Infrared cameras are considered to be 0.0 lux in infrared mode
- in other words they can 'see' in total darkness. Infrared cameras
are also compared by how far they can see in total darkness. This is
generally a result of how many infrared LEDs are built into the
camera.
If you are going to install an infrared camera
outdoors for your property, its best to use an outdoor weatherproof
bullet style camera. This is because if you use an indoor infrared
camera and then you need to put it in an outdoor housing, sometimes
the infrared light reflects off the glass of the housing. Some
people get acceptable results if the camera is absolutely flush up
to the glass thereby reducing the glare. An alternative solution is
to use a day / night camera that has an extra sensitive imaging chip
that allows it to capture a good picture in low light situations
without using infrared lighting. This works well for example if
there are streetlights outside or an exterior light that can be left
on at night. Please be reminded that cameras without infrared
lighting will not capture an image in total darkness. The other
issue to consider is that infrared cameras require more power (more
amperage). The power requirements are provided in the specs for each
camera.
Buying Tips:
When there is no security
lighting system around your house, infrared camera system could be
very important to your house security. Some devices capture images
in color, which is best for daytime lighting. For nighttime viewing
choosing an infrared camera, which captures images in black and
white is better. Many of the products will display color during the
day and automatically switch to black and white infrared viewing
when light levels are low. Resolution levels for black and white are
usually about 400 lines, do not expect any higher resolution cause
the benefits you could get from this is minimal. For color cameras,
the higher resolution the better the picture you can get.
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