Why is the camera image blurry? 8 possible causes and fixes

First determine the type of blur

A complaint of blurry image covers very different problems. Is the image always blurry, or only at night? Does it look clear on the monitor connected to the recorder but blurry on the phone? On all cameras, or on a single camera? Are moving people leaving trails, or are walls and signs not clear either?

Answering these questions prevents unnecessary parts replacement. A foggy image that starts at night on a single camera is mostly a lens or reflection problem. If all cameras look blurry only on the phone, the cause is not the cameras but the connection or the app setting.

While checking, open a daytime and a night recording of the same scene side by side. The difference between the two recordings shows which item to start with.

• Dirty lens or dome cover.
• Reflection of the night infrared light.
• Focus drift.
• Fog and moisture inside the camera.
• Low bit rate and compression setting.
• Night motion blur.
• Internet connection and low-quality stream on the phone.
• Cable, connector or power problem.

Lens, cover and moisture: causes 1, 2 and 4

In outdoor cameras the most common cause is dirt. After a dust storm in Şanlıurfa, the front of the lens is covered with a thin layer of dust; bird droppings, rain stains and insect marks have the same effect. In the daytime the image looks pale and hazy. Cleaning with a soft cloth often solves the problem.

Night blur is usually a reflection. If the dome camera's cover is scratched or dirty, the camera's own infrared light reflects back off the cover and the image turns into a white fog. A spider web in front of the lens, or an eave or wall very close to the camera, creates the same reflection. The camera needs to be moved away from the reflecting surface or its angle changed.

In winter months and in rainy weather, fog can form inside the camera. If the whole image is hazy in the morning hours and improves towards noon, this is most likely the cause. The gasket on the housing may be worn or moisture may have entered through the cable entry. The gasket and cable entry need to be checked, and the camera replaced if necessary.

Expert note: Do not wipe the dome cover with a hard or dry cloth. The fine scratches that form are not visible in the daytime, but they blur the image in infrared light at night.

Focus and motion: causes 3 and 6

In cameras with an adjustable lens, focus can drift over time. Wind, vibration or any interference with the camera throws off the focus. In motorized-lens cameras, focus is readjusted from the recorder's or the camera's menu; most models have an auto-focus button. If the focus is off on a fixed-lens camera, the problem may be in the camera itself.

The cause of images that are clear in the daytime but where a person moving at night looks like a blurry trail is the exposure time. To collect more light in the dark, the camera keeps the shutter open longer; during this time a moving person blurs. Shortening the longest exposure time in the camera settings reduces motion blur, but darkens the image. The lasting solution is often to add extra lighting to the area.

Settings and connection: causes 5 and 7

The camera records the image by compressing it. If the setting called bit rate is kept too low, the image breaks into blocks frame by frame, especially in moving scenes, and detail is lost. This setting is sometimes lowered on purpose to save disk space. A balance has to be struck between recording quality and disk time; our disk calculator helps you see this balance.

When watching on a phone, most apps show the camera's low-resolution secondary stream to save data. If the image is blurry on the phone but clear on the recorder, this is the reason. Switching the quality in the app to the high stream fixes the image; if the mobile data connection is weak, this time the image may stutter. To tell whether the problem is only in remote viewing, open the recording on site and compare.

Cable and power: cause 8

In analog cameras, a faulty coaxial cable or an oxidized BNC connector causes snow, lines and color distortion in the image. In IP cameras, a bad cable connection causes the image to freeze, skip frames and turn blocky.

Insufficient power also affects the image. A camera at the end of a long cable, or one connected to a PoE switch whose capacity is full, receives too little power when the night infrared lights come on, and the image degrades or the camera restarts. If the problem appears only at night and only on some cameras, the power should be checked.

It may be a lack of detail, not blur

For some complaints, none of the eight items on the list is the cause. The image is sharp, but when you look at the recording and zoom into a person far away, the face breaks up into pixels frame by frame. This is not a fault; it is a limit related to the choice and placement of the camera.

A wide-angle camera shows the whole garden, but gives very few pixels to a person standing at a door fifteen meters away. Digital zoom after recording cannot bring back detail that the camera did not record. In this case the solution is not cleaning or settings; it is moving the camera closer to the target, adding a narrow-angle or motorized-lens camera, or increasing the resolution.

To calculate before installation at what distance a face can be made out with which camera, you can use our camera distance tool.

When is technical support needed?

You do not need technical knowledge to clean the lens, change the quality setting on the phone, or open the recording on site and compare. If the problem continues after trying these, contact technical support for focus adjustment, bit rate, cable testing and power measurement. Many settings problems can be solved with a remote connection; cable, moisture and hardware problems need on-site work.

When asking for support, describing the problem shortens the time: which camera, at what time of day, on the monitor or the phone, since when. Also attach a screenshot of the blurry image.

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