Cant figure out proper focal lengths

[thisbeJonas]

Trying to upgrade from my super wide cant identify anything LAView cameras and not having luck finding a good setup to cover most of parking area. I have tried crossing the cameras but the focal length for that really leaves a lot of blind spots. I have tried pointing to where each set of cars parks 2 cars park directly in front of garage,1 of them being directly at the corner where the camera on the left would be positioned so it would need to be very wide to include entire vehicle as seen in the photo. 2 trucks park in the bottom right corner of parking area. The picture of the trucks is from the current camera.
I have considered a PTZ camera but they are so big (if Im reading correctly about 12" tall without mounting bracket) that they would hang done to low from my eaves making a great theft target as well as an eyesore.

The next time this happens I want to have a clear image to at least have a chance of identifying the POS. Also I am installing aux IR illuminators to get rid of the spider webs.





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[mat200]

HI @thisbeJonas

I would install more cameras... imho 2 is not enough for what it looks like you are attempting to cover

2 cameras on the garage:
Put one camera on each side of the garage doors - I like the Dahua OEM 2MP starlight models for low light conditions,

one more camera for the entrance of the driveway:
AND add a good varifocal camera watching the entrance of your driveway, also add an alarm sensor...
( varifocal cameras are nice - as you can customize the FOV, so no as much need to worry about precalculating the FOV )

 

[thisbeJonas]

HI @thisbeJonas

I would install more cameras... imho 2 is not enough for what it looks like you are attempting to cover

2 cameras on the garage:
Put one camera on each side of the garage doors - I like the Dahua OEM 2MP starlight models for low light conditions,

one more camera for the entrance of the driveway:
AND add a good varifocal camera watching the entrance of your driveway, also add an alarm sensor...
( varifocal cameras are nice - as you can customize the FOV, so no as much need to worry about precalculating the FOV )

That is essentially what I was trying to do but even with the varifocal the field of view gets to narrow once I zoom out to get the distance I would need. Almost as if I need to line the whole garage wall with 12 mm cameras. At least according to the camera tool webpage.

 

[mat200]

That is essentially what I was trying to do but even with the varifocal the field of view gets to narrow once I zoom out to get the distance I would need. Almost as if I need to line the whole garage wall with 12 mm cameras. At least according to the camera tool webpage.

Hi @thisbeJonas

Yes, to get "perfect" coverage you'd need lots of cameras. Probably not a viable option for most of us due to costs and WAF issues.

A 1080P / 2MP camera will have 100 ppf when the width of the FOV is 19.8 feet - this is at the ID distance max ( based on 100 ppf - a standard many of us like to use here ).

So, you can use this to plan out your setup. Remember focus on getting a good ID image capture on choke points, and you can use a wider FOV camera to record what is going on ( an overview cameras )

I like at least one camera running in color mode all the time to help get color data.

Normally I like anyone coming to the garage or front door to have passed through at least 2 camera zones - thus giving me at least 2 good views of capturing an ID shot.