I'm looking for some guidance with respect to infrared illumination. Has anyone experimented with the quality of different infrared illuminators? I have a Sony SNC-DF70N looking over a driveway & am looking to light as much area as possible as smoothtly as possible to avoid hot spots. I had a smash-n-grab in my driveway last night & just see flashlights and shadows in the DVR -really frustrating.
Infrared Illuminators
- Thread starter cbs01
- Start date
Welcome to CocoonTech. Sorry to hear about your problem.
I can't help you with the IR, but I'm in the process of choosing cameras for my new home. It's already wired, just have to pull the trigger on the hardware. I have decided, though, not to go IR. I'm using motion-activated security lights that should light up the area so the camera can record reasonable detail, and has the added benefit of possibly scaring off the intruder.
Good luck.
Kevin
I can't help you with the IR, but I'm in the process of choosing cameras for my new home. It's already wired, just have to pull the trigger on the hardware. I have decided, though, not to go IR. I'm using motion-activated security lights that should light up the area so the camera can record reasonable detail, and has the added benefit of possibly scaring off the intruder.
Good luck.
Kevin
In general IR is a kinda last resort or covert surviellence thing, you are much better off adding conventional lighting that will not only aide your cameras but also deter the bad guys in the first place.
Good IR for outdoors is not cheap.
All IR on the camera (except 1 model!) is junk, don't buy into the hype.
I'm unsure if the SNC-DF70N is very IR sensitive so it may not be too helpful, you can test it by putting the unit in a dark closet and using a normal remote control as an illuminator. If you can see the IR LED in the remote thats one thing, if that remote's LED can light the whole closet you are pretty good to go. I see it does have an IR corrected lens but that in itself doesn't mean much.
I would suggest you install a couple of floodlghts and a nice dual tech motion outside, have your lighting control system run the floods at say 20% output until motion is detected then ramp up to whatever makes the camera look best. The 20% output is probably enough to deter many of them from looking at your property and in my case 60% output is almost too much for my low light bullets.
Also you are better off having more cheaper low light cameras then having just one expensive camera.
Good IR for outdoors is not cheap.
All IR on the camera (except 1 model!) is junk, don't buy into the hype.
I'm unsure if the SNC-DF70N is very IR sensitive so it may not be too helpful, you can test it by putting the unit in a dark closet and using a normal remote control as an illuminator. If you can see the IR LED in the remote thats one thing, if that remote's LED can light the whole closet you are pretty good to go. I see it does have an IR corrected lens but that in itself doesn't mean much.
I would suggest you install a couple of floodlghts and a nice dual tech motion outside, have your lighting control system run the floods at say 20% output until motion is detected then ramp up to whatever makes the camera look best. The 20% output is probably enough to deter many of them from looking at your property and in my case 60% output is almost too much for my low light bullets.
Also you are better off having more cheaper low light cameras then having just one expensive camera.
Thanks. sounds like you've done this before. Tell me if I'm crazy here. I'm thinking that I can have my HAI OmniProII turn on some floodlights to 20% with UPB at sunset every day & then write a program to have a motion sensor input ramp the dimmer up to optimal light level when it's tripped. Is this something like what you're talking about?
CollinR is "in the business" so I would definitely consider him an expert.
CollinR - can you give any suggestions as to what type/brand of outdoor motion detector works well? I'm looking for something a little better than the built in motion detector on the motion spot lights you buy a the hardware store.
CollinR - can you give any suggestions as to what type/brand of outdoor motion detector works well? I'm looking for something a little better than the built in motion detector on the motion spot lights you buy a the hardware store.
I do CCTV for a living but automation for a hobby. I do almost exactly as discribed but using X-10 and an Ocelot works very well, in my case it also puts my PTZs into scanning mode for a time then resets them to their home positions.
Unfortunatly I went cheap on the motions and didn't get dual techs, I really regret it and with luch will fix that now that I have found a reasonable priced outdoor unit. Aleph XC1XT is what I plan to try next but no experience yet.
Unfortunatly I went cheap on the motions and didn't get dual techs, I really regret it and with luch will fix that now that I have found a reasonable priced outdoor unit. Aleph XC1XT is what I plan to try next but no experience yet.
jaysonc
Active Member
I will share a bit of experience from my install. I am ding what CollinR is describing with the 20% lights, ramping them up based on motion.
One thing I have learned the hard way, is to give some consideration to your driveway and manage the light intensity when cars pull in.
In my first iteration, one of my flood lights ramped up when I drove up in my car at night. In it destroyed my night vision instantly and put me in a situation where I was nearly blind (zero situational awareness) sitting in my car. Quite the opposite of the intended outcome.
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Jayson
Yea you want to point the floods basically straight down. This serves 2 purposes, you won't get so much direct bounceback into the cameras and nobody can hude under/behind the light. When you point the lights outward you can actually provide the bud guys concealment which is exactly what you don't want. I low light camera should have no issues with only getting the light reflected off nearby objects.
I would love to see a small snippet of that video, so people can learn from this. Many people think IR is some magical solution, but in most cases, it causes nothing but problems. I have gone through several cameras with IR onboard, and they have been a disappointment every single time.
As you wish, Xavee day/night IR bullet camera ($150) vs. LVS LLB-II BW ($100 or 4-$400 with UTP gear for CTers) at .02lux.
Right click, save as.
http://www.lowvoltageonline.com/Gallery/Ha...%20lowlight.wmv
Playback at 704x480, not fullscreen
(Yea I dunno why it's 1fps it was encoded at 15fps, the original is better quality but not in a codec you can play. So I hope you can play this but if ya can't... Sorry.)
CollinR,
Very helpful video and info. Thanks so much for that. Is the LVS LLB-II a dome camera? Any pictures of it available?
robolo
I did as suggested & came up with what I feel are good results using a two-head quartz halogen lamp along with a pair of carriage lamps. I noticed that that the low light video seems much more clear when compared to daytime mode. While I like color, the clarity of the low-light B&W seems worth the sacrifice. Thanks for your help.
Robolo those are tiny bullet cameras about 3/4" by 2".
That wasn't day vs. night that was camera vs. camera at night. The LVS LLB-II is a BW only camera the clarity improves when you have more ambient light. That Xavee fake day/night actually has a pretty good daytime picture, it's just most want t to work at night too.
That wasn't day vs. night that was camera vs. camera at night. The LVS LLB-II is a BW only camera the clarity improves when you have more ambient light. That Xavee fake day/night actually has a pretty good daytime picture, it's just most want t to work at night too.
So what is the solution for good day AND night time images? Have two cameras (color for day and B&W for night)? Spend $$ for a better all around camera? Get good lighting that comes on with motion detection?
Do the color cameras that switch to true B&W at light really work?
Do the color cameras that switch to true B&W at light really work?
