Cameral Locations for front of the house...

[dan2112]

Need help on cam locations to cover the driveway and the front door.
I am thinking bullets for all three locations namely the IPC-T5442TM-ZE.

I have one cat6 cable routed to the north camera location that I will split into three. The outside lights are "shielded" on two sides so I don't think they will interfere with the camera (have to test with a rig before install).

Here is the calculator view: The camera is the 6mm IPC-T5442TM-AS since ipvm doesn't have the ZE model listed yet.


Here is the front view and the "planned" camera locations (north, south and door).


I was planning to route outside rated cat6 cable (no conduit - WAF) along side the inner beam pictured above the camera locations.
The cameras are all around 8' off the ground.

Would the smaller IPC-T5442TM-AS work here?
Any input on the camera locations would helpful.

Thanks,
Dan

 

[pozzello]

looks pretty good overall, but i would try to lower the cam by the door (see red dot)

 

[dan2112]

looks pretty good overall, but i would try to lower the cam by the door (see red dot)

View attachment 66846

Thank you - that location would be tough sell for the wife.

Here is what my iphone captured from that location:

 

[dan2112]

Oh and I forgot to mention the driveway slopes downward toward the house, so anybody coming down the driveway will be about 4' above the plane of the camera when they approach the house.

 

[pozzello]

the other cams would get anyone approaching. the door cam is meant to keep an eye on packages and get a good identifiable shot of people at the door.
seeing the top of someone's head is not ideal. but if that's all the WAF will allow, then that's what it is...

maybe the green spot is more acceptable?

 

[dan2112]

Point taken - I'll run it up the flag poll and see

 

[samplenhold]

You really should just buy one T5442 varifocal first and test each location out. See if the 6mm will work in locations. Your cam at the garage will be more than 25' to anyone walking up to the door. That probably would be at the edge of the distance to get a good face shot.

Consider that some folks here have had great success painting the cable, conduit, and cams to match their siding. That dark blue would probably do well to hide things. Others have camouflaged it with a welcome sign or birdhouse, etc.

Lower at the door is better. Having a cam that looks at packages, to me, is kind of silly. It's not like they are going to leave on their own. You really want to capture people coming and going. Capturing them bending over and picking up the package is not that helpful.

Check out this thread for more info:

Newbie Starter Guide to IP Cam System – VPN setup – Computer Hardware – Blue Iris – Dahua Cameras

This is an intermediate / newbie guide for people just starting out looking for a surveillance setup. I know this setup might not be for everyone and there are many options. You can find a lot of this information in the Wiki: IP Cam Talk Wiki | IP Cam Talk A great place to start in the Wiki...

ipcamtalk.com

 

[samplenhold]

Something else to consider. Most folks here recommend two cams at the garage door pointed in a crossing pattern. If you ever park cars in the driveway, it would be best to do this.

Also, if the front door cam can't be moved lower, then position the one on the right that is past the windows to cove the front door. If you have enough zoom, and the varifocal will, then the angle is such you could get a decent face shot from there. It's really not the height, it is the angle.

 

[dan2112]

Something else to consider. Most folks here recommend two cams at the garage door pointed in a crossing pattern. If you ever park cars in the driveway, it would be best to do this.

Also, if the front door cam can't be moved lower, then position the one on the right that is past the windows to cove the front door. If you have enough zoom, and the varifocal will, then the angle is such you could get a decent face shot from there. It's really not the height, it is the angle.

Thank you this is very helpful and exactly the feedback I was hoping for. I have limited power budget as I only have one Cat6 cable cable coming to the front (no power). I have Ubiquity gear with a 24 port POE switch in the house so I was planning to use the Unify Flex Switch with a 80W POE injector to give me four potential camera locations. I was also thinking about having a camera on the north side facing the street to cover the small walkway on the north end of the driveway (right side on the first pict). So the max number of cameras I can have is four unless you know of a POE powered extender with more than 5 ports that can be mounted outside (or in enclosure). I already have a HP Elitedesk G4 i5 ready to go in the data closet to run BI. The house is on a dead end street so it's not a high traffic area. This is just the front there are other cameras planned around the outside of the house, but I wanted to start small with the front first.

 

[mat200]

Thank you this is very helpful and exactly the feedback I was hoping for. I have limited power budget as I only have one Cat6 cable cable coming to the front (no power). I have Ubiquity gear with a 24 port POE switch in the house so I was planning to use the Unify Flex Switch with a 80W POE injector to give me four potential camera locations. I was also thinking about having a camera on the north side facing the street to cover the small walkway on the north end of the driveway (right side on the first pict). So the max number of cameras I can have is four unless you know of a POE powered extender with more than 5 ports that can be mounted outside (or in enclosure). I already have a HP Elitedesk G4 i5 ready to go in the data closet to run BI. The house is on a dead end street so it's not a high traffic area. This is just the front there are other cameras planned around the outside of the house, but I wanted to start small with the front first.

View attachment 66876

Hi @dan2112

Recommend running extra cat6 cables while you are doing your runs... N+1 to each location you are considering.

During these times when people are wearing masks you will need better chances at getting a good facial ID image as well as image of any car used.

Definitely test your setup with a friend wearing a hoodie and cap acting as a prowler...

Here is an example of what members have been seeing during these times:

Can anyone identify this car?

We had a group of female car door checkers cruise down our street last night. Normally I'd check the tag with www.vehiclehistory.com to confirm the make/model/year of the vehicle, but in this case the car had a temporary paper tag. Can anyone tell what car they were in? I suspect they were...

ipcamtalk.com

 

[dan2112]

Hi @dan2112

Recommend running extra cat6 cables while you are doing your runs... N+1 to each location you are considering.

During these times when people are wearing masks you will need better chances at getting a good facial ID image as well as image of any car used.

Definitely test your setup with a friend wearing a hoodie and cap acting as a prowler...

Here is an example of what members have been seeing during these times:

Can anyone identify this car?

We had a group of female car door checkers cruise down our street last night. Normally I'd check the tag with www.vehiclehistory.com to confirm the make/model/year of the vehicle, but in this case the car had a temporary paper tag. Can anyone tell what car they were in? I suspect they were...

ipcamtalk.com

Yeah lesson learned on the cable to the front. Unfortunately I can't change it. Other cables in the house run under the house and I can install a splitters there as the runs to the data closet where done when I was out of town. I said two runs and got one and by the time I caught it the walls where up and painted and I didn't want to tear the wall apart to "fix" it. They fessed up to the error - but damage done. The data aspect of the remodel was one CF.

 

[mat200]

Yeah lesson learned on the cable to the front. Unfortunately I can't change it. Other cables in the house run under the house and I can install a splitters there as the runs to the data closet where done when I was out of town. I said two runs and got one and by the time I caught it the walls where up and painted and I didn't want to tear the wall apart to "fix" it. They fessed up to the error - but damage done. The data aspect of the remodel was one CF.

That's my experience with a lot of contractors... you need to check on the work each night / day... seen a lot of bone heads, even sometimes the owner of a subcontracting company.

At this point, I'd rather do a lot of the work myself...

 

[dan2112]

the other cams would get anyone approaching. the door cam is meant to keep an eye on packages and get a good identifiable shot of people at the door.
seeing the top of someone's head is not ideal. but if that's all the WAF will allow, then that's what it is...

maybe the green spot is more acceptable? View attachment 66851

So after discussions with the wife she agreed with a location between the red and green dots, but (there's always a but) the camera can't be an eyesore / ugly. I showed her the turret, but the base plus the turret may stick out too far for her liking. Is there a "lower" profile camera then when mounted doesn't stick out as much as a turret. I would think a high quality 2MP camera would do it. Maybe a wedge camera?

 

[mat200]

So after discussions with the wife she agreed with a location between the red and green dots, but (there's always a but) the camera can't be an eyesore / ugly. I showed her the turret, but the base plus the turret may stick out too far for her liking. Is there a "lower" profile camera then when mounted doesn't stick out as much as a turret. I would think a high quality 2MP camera would do it. Maybe a wedge camera?

hint: paint is your friend..

 

[samplenhold]

but the base plus the turret may stick out too far for her liking.

No matter what cam you get, turret or wedge, you have to protect the connection from rain. That is why the mounting box. How are you going to get the cable to the cam? If it is coming from behind the siding, then you could just mount the turret w/o a box, waterproof the connection as usual, and then stuff it behind the siding and seal that hole. Again, painting the cam the color of your siding is a real option.

 

[dan2112]

No matter what cam you get, turret or wedge, you have to protect the connection from rain. That is why the mounting box. How are you going to get the cable to the cam? If it is coming from behind the siding, then you could just mount the turret w/o a box, waterproof the connection as usual, and then stuff it behind the siding and seal that hole. Again, painting the cam the color of your siding is a real option.

 

[samplenhold]

You quoted me but did not write anything. Is there a question?

 

[dan2112]

You quoted me but did not write anything. Is there a question?

Strange - I closed the browser page before I finished writing the response.

Here is the new location:


I can route the cable up the "window side" and yes I will be using a mounting box. I think my wife was just concerned about a the size of the turret sticking out. She is used to seeing dome style and she hates the bullets.

.

I think it's time to order a varifocal and start playing.

 

[samplenhold]

I think it's time to order a varifocal and start playing.

Yes, I think you are right. That position should work nicely.

 

[samplenhold]

Fixed lens are simpler and more robust.

You're kidding, right? More robust? Just how are they 'more robust'? They certainly can't give a wide range (robust) FOV. The adjustable FOV is the whole purpose of using a varifocal, especially to decide on what focal length to use.