Camcorder as video source for 24x7 monitoring?

[Jeff Sutter]

Greetings.

I need to videotape activity (vandalism) some 200 feet away, 24x7, for
about two months, from two camera positions. Standard mini-DV
camcorders with 20x zoom lenses would provide the best image, but I
wonder if I'm asking for trouble - has anyone tested the duty-cycle on
such camcorders?

Would there be a more practical way to obtain a 10-20x zoom setting on
a security camera?

 

[Jim Rojas]

As long as the camcorders remain indoors, that should be fine for that short
time period. Make sure you keep the viewing screen closed or shut off, to
reduce wear. Use the composite RCA output into 2 seperate TV's with DVR's
and you are good to go.

BTW, unless the area is brightly lit at night, your recording will be very
poor.

Jim Rojas

 

[J. Sloud]

Greetings.

I need to videotape activity (vandalism) some 200 feet away, 24x7, for
about two months, from two camera positions. Standard mini-DV
camcorders with 20x zoom lenses would provide the best image, but I
wonder if I'm asking for trouble - has anyone tested the duty-cycle on
such camcorders?

"mini-DV camcorders would provide the best image" Compared to what? A
high resolution CCD camera and a lens with correct focal length should
do what you need much better than a camcorder.

Would there be a more practical way to obtain a 10-20x zoom setting on
a security camera?

How wide is the shot that you are looking to monitor? Since you know
the distance, you simply must know the width and height of the scene
to determine the proper lens to view what you need. For instance,at
200ft, if the scene is 20 feet across you'll need a 50mm lens with a
standard 1/3" CCD camera. A 75mm zoom lens would show about 13ft
across at 200 feet.

As for recording, a motion-based DVR set-up on a unit with
multiplexing capabilities would simplify searching and archiving
greatly.

 

[Bob La Londe]

Greetings.

I need to videotape activity (vandalism) some 200 feet away, 24x7, for
about two months, from two camera positions. Standard mini-DV
camcorders with 20x zoom lenses would provide the best image, but I
wonder if I'm asking for trouble - has anyone tested the duty-cycle on
such camcorders?

Would there be a more practical way to obtain a 10-20x zoom setting on
a security camera?

Your camcorders might hold up that long under continuous use, if they don't
have an auto shutdown feature.

All kinds of lenses are availble for CCTV cameras though. I typically buy
2.8 to 12 mm lenses and then jsut adjest them for the application. I also
keep a few 5.5-33 mm lenses on hand and of course there are others in oth
fixed and varifocal. If you do a search on-line there are a couple lens
calculators available where you can plug in the distnace and field of view
and it will tell you which fixed focal length lends will suit your needs.
Then you don't even need to go the expense of a varifocal lens. Just order
the one you need at the same time you order your cameras.