Need advice for cameras for school playground

[gdogvm]

I am on the tech committee for our small private school. We are upgrading the current ancient analog cameras to a new IP camera system. I already have the NVR and a couple cameras for some entrances, but we want to cover the playground as well. Is a short focal length really about the only way to cover a playground, in order to see what the kids close to the building are doing AND see what the kids off in the soccer field are doing (I know we won't be able to see faces, but hopefully can at least tell which kid pushed the other kid first)? I did order a vari-focal camera so that I could play with different focal lengths, but I really can't see any other way around just using something like a 2.8mm focal camera. The only thing I can think of is using higher res cameras (8k) so that there are more pixels per person who are at the far edges of the playground. Building has good outdoor lighting at night, so better daytime cameras will be ok for close range night time imaging.

Thanks for the advice in advance.

 

[gdogvm]

Follow-up question: I was planning on getting cams with audio because it's easier to have the audio and ignore it than to not have any audio and wish you had for a situation. Is that logical, or would there be no purpose to having audio for a playground setup?

 

[sebastiantombs]

The next big question to answer is how many cameras do you expect to be installing? The more, the merrier in a case like this. Cameras looking along the walls of the buildings will catch the "wall huggers" and then some additional cameras to overlook the playground areas, again with overlapping fields of view.

Sound is always a good idea so I'd plan for audio capability as well.

Your current NVR, I assume, is analog or CVI. If you're replacing that be careful with the bandwidth capabilities, especially if deciding on 4K/8MP cameras. You may be better off with a dedicated PC running Blue Iris to be able to handle the number of cameras involved.

 

[matchewready]

I would think varifocals and ptz cams would a good call. I know at our district were using a lot if ptz cameras. Have you looked at any of those, just give you a lot more flexibility.

 

[gdogvm]

The original plan was for 4 cameras--one looking to the east at the soccer field, one looking at the basketball court, two for the playground to the north and northwest. When I sketched it out (the attached image in original post) it looks like minimum of six.

@matchewready I hadn't really considered the possibility of PTZ. Do you know if they have their PTZ set on a cycle to scan back and forth, or jump from one zone to another zone every several seconds?

 

[Ubaid Masood]

How about Dahua Eagle Eye Panoramic Camera to monitor whole scene in front of you!!

PSDW81642ML-A360-D237

8x2MP LENS + 1x2MP 37x Optical Zoom PTZ Camera in one casing.

 

[sebastiantombs]

Four cameras to cover an area that large, especially if you also want to watch along the building walls, will not be adequate. You have what appears to be a fairly large area and sever places around the buildings that will be hidden from view with that low number.

 

[mat200]

I am on the tech committee for our small private school. We are upgrading the current ancient analog cameras to a new IP camera system. I already have the NVR and a couple cameras for some entrances, but we want to cover the playground as well. Is a short focal length really about the only way to cover a playground, in order to see what the kids close to the building are doing AND see what the kids off in the soccer field are doing (I know we won't be able to see faces, but hopefully can at least tell which kid pushed the other kid first)? I did order a vari-focal camera so that I could play with different focal lengths, but I really can't see any other way around just using something like a 2.8mm focal camera. The only thing I can think of is using higher res cameras (8k) so that there are more pixels per person who are at the far edges of the playground. Building has good outdoor lighting at night, so better daytime cameras will be ok for close range night time imaging.

Thanks for the advice in advance.

Welcome @gdogvm

Double check the possible legal issues with audio recording.

Check the DORI section of the cliff notes, you may need more than one camera in locations where you want a close view and a longer view.

 

[bp2008]

For daytime overview cameras, 4K models with 2.8mm or similar lenses are pretty good. It usually isn't too hard to tell people apart at a distance if you already know the people. It is a different story if you want to be able to identify strangers who never get very close to any of your cameras. That is where higher zoom and careful positioning come in.

Most cameras max out at around 100° horizontal field of view, so they don't do so well at seamlessly covering an entire side of a building. One 4K 2.8mm cam would do great in this corner I think.




But for up here you'd want at least two. I'd put them at the corners or the building facing each other so nobody can hide directly below the cameras.





180° fisheye cams are also an option. When wall-mounted, they don't require dewarping software. They have practically no blind spots. 16:9 models may have a bit of inconsequential blind spot directly above and below, but some fisheye cams are designed to fit the entirely of the lens' field of view on the image sensor so that isn't even a problem. Here's one I have:



The amount of detail captured is significantly less than a more traditional camera of the same resolution, but depending on the location and purpose that may be acceptable.