A recent mailbox whack caught on a security camera was called to our attention by empiretc. The topic naturally went in the direction of keeping a digital eye on our valuables... I'll keep it confined to the wrapper for the 7.3L to avoid OT.

My resume on this: I've been working with video/stills since tubes, tape, and film... and part of my duties at work is to maintain a production/security camera network. My primary duty is to program 3D camera systems to distinguish and recognize marks on produce... not entirely dissimilar from facial recognition software you've all heard about on the news and movies. Let's just say I'm qualified to speak on this topic... moreso than on anyting diesel related.

I'm also aware there are others here whose jobs are fully dedicated to the systems we're talking about... I hope they jump in and don't let me hog the topic.

If you have a security camera sytem to keep an eye on the driveway where your 7.3L (and its family) naps... share your choices, experiences, and thoughts. I will have some options to recommend, along with the obligitory explanations (in plain english) as to why they are recommended. We're about to have a video class, as it relates to our trucks (including backup cams, trailer cams, dash cams, onboard video players, etc....), so fire up the ol' subscribe button and don't be shy with the input or questions.

My family will be visiting from out of town this week, so my responses will be delayed... but this is a good topic for the back burner anyway.

 

Subscribing. I have a couple acres I'd like to keep tabs on.

 

Living where I do, I also should have some type of security camera, not hidden but in plain view. I don't, but with input from ya'll maybe I'll have the info I need to make this happen.

 

Subscribed.

... two 7.3L vehicles parked at the end of my house in the driveway beside my bedroom window, and have another one parked on the street out front (roughly 50-60 feet from the house) in tow with my daughter's '04 I35 and another son's '98 4Runner. The dog is penned outside of two windows in the back, but I am considering multiple video surveillance camera's as an addition to what we are already doing.

All insights, lessons, and recommendations are welcomed ahead of time.

 

I guess this is related since these guys do have a 6L superduty in the driveway. They have a cheap Zmodo system and it recorded this girl from the time she left her driveway until she plowed into the back of their street-parked diesel car:


Based on this I am thinking about purchasing one of these systems because the price, capabilities, and resolution would meet my needs.

 

double post

 

If you guys are serious about security, I can hook you up with a radar system with an automatically slaving infrared camera. It will detect anything that is moving at least 3"/second. Not cheap, but I'm just saying, if you really want to know whats going on out there, lol.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by duck fan

Subscribing. I have a couple acres I'd like to keep tabs on.

Long driveway eh? (staying on topic )

That's the tricky one. No light... camera no worky. Daytime is easy, but you'll only see a figure at a distance. No matter what you want a camera on, it's always best to have the camera close. A zoom lens helps, but then you have tunnel-vision. Good for a long, straight driveway... bad for an open field. To really cover that much space... it takes many cameras, settle for not identifying the figure, cameras at entrances to the property, or have an event alarm (motion where there shouldn't be) "page" you so you can check in on the system. You can then have a PTZ (Pan Tilt Zoom) camera that you can control through the internet. [LINK] (turn off ActiveX filter to see the camera)

Dark requires a lot of light, or takes a special camera - the IR camera. It has no color to it and even with its capabilities, it still needs IR lighting on the subject for best results.

The technology is improving practically daily now... bringing the prices way down for basic systems. This brings up budget. Are you looking to smother your acreage with cameras, or just let you know if something is out there so you can investigate? Smothering brings the price up because now you're buying wire and installation goodies. Wireless cams are a bit disappointing to date... I wouldn't own one that I can afford.

Almost everybody is familiar with coax video cable, but the pros don't use it. I don't use it. Everybody uses CAT5e or CAT6 cable. It's cheaper, it's widely available, it transmits analog video longer distances, and it can handle IP cameras when upgrading. I use video/power baluns to adapt from the connectors on an analog camera to the square Ethernet plug that everybody is familiar with. [LINK]

"But Tugly, what the hell is analog video?" Nitty-gritty on this one is boring. Anaolog is cheap and looks fuzzy compared to our modern HDTVs. Digital is expensive and crisp (there is a scale to this generality). Think old TV vs. new TV.

 

Everything emits IR energy. No lighting necessary. There is simply nothing better than a quality IR camera for surveillance or target acquisition.

 

Quality IR camera. All rules I'm giving here are for the systems you typically see online or at your favorite big-box store for something like $500 or less with anything from 2 to 6 cameras in the box (or up to $2,000 for a 16-camera system). Throw enough money around and almost anything is possible. Most good-quality IP cameras powered through the Ehternet cable pop $250 each (and up). If you're in this budget, you'll likely be talking to your local professional for a price on a real system. I've seen low-cost analog IR cameras that do a respectable job within 100', and those that don't.

 

Yeah, we're talking practically apples and oranges, but just for conversation's sake here is the product combination I was speaking of before from a company I rep. It's a really amazing system for those that need serious surveillance (industrial locations, national security interests, etc)


And here's a video of the IR image:

http://youtu.be/ZUyRcf2422A

 

That has been my experience. My neighbor has IR camera's on all 4 corners of his house as well as 4 of them on his tailgate bus. They are all recording to a DVR that gives about 40 days or so worth of video so you can look back if you didn't notice something right away. Pretty decent set up. Side benefit to me is that at least 2 of them are looking at my house and driveway so if anything happens I can see it.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Robert6401

Yeah, we're talking practically apples and oranges, but just for conversation's sake here is the product combination I was speaking of before from a company I rep. It's a really amazing system for those that need serious surveillance (industrial locations, national security interests, etc)

Thermal PTZ? OK folks, Robert6401 has a camera for you. Just hand over the keys to your shiny new 2013 Superduty with the 6.7L Powerstroke, and this puppy is yours.

 

Yeah, I think we aren't even talking apples and oranges, we are talking apples and hand grenades at least.

 

IR cameras typically have IR lights built into them (you will see the little LEDs in the front), the lights are good from 25 feet up to about 100 feet, depending on the design. Hold your hand in front of the lens and night and it will be really bright.