Short answer
The most common reason camera recordings turn out to be useless is not the camera itself but its placement. Cameras that are mounted too high, face the light, look at a door from behind, or cannot see what is directly below them do not give faces or detail at the moment of an incident. Camera points should be planned on a sketch, writing down what will be seen at each point, and checked at night after installation.
Why is placement more important than the camera?
When the recording is looked at after an incident, the sentence heard most is that the person is visible but not recognized. Often the camera is a good model; the problem is where and how it was mounted. A mid-range camera in the right place is more useful than an expensive camera in the wrong place.
To plan the placement, write a task for each camera point: this camera will identify whoever enters, this camera will show whether there is movement in the garden, this camera will read the plate of the vehicle entering the parking lot. Once the task is clear, height, angle and lens choice also become clear. The nine mistakes below come up again and again in systems installed without this task definition.
A camera with no task fills a square on the screen but is of no use to anyone at the moment of an incident. Writing a one-sentence task definition for each camera also prevents buying unnecessary cameras.
The task list also serves as a yardstick for checking the system after installation.
Height, direction, and coverage mistakes
1. Mounting the camera too high. The camera is placed at the highest point so it cannot be reached, but a camera looking straight down sees the top of the head and the cap brim instead of the face. At points where identification is needed, the camera should be too high to reach but angled slightly downward at the target.
2. Trying to see everything with one camera. A wide-angle camera shows the whole yard, but a person ten meters away is only a few pixels. One camera for the general view and a separate narrow-angle camera for critical points such as the door gives better results.
3. Looking at the door from the wrong side. A camera that looks at the door from inside the building sees the back of the person coming in and the face of the person leaving. A burglar often does not hide their face when entering, but does when leaving. Entrance cameras should be placed so they see the face of whoever comes in.
Light and night mistakes
4. Pointing the camera against the light. A camera looking from inside at a glass door or an entrance facing west sees the person as a dark silhouette during the day because of backlight. At these points, choose a wide dynamic range (WDR) camera and adjust the angle so the sun stays out of the frame. In Şanlıurfa, this problem is even more noticeable on west-facing facades on summer afternoons.
5. Not thinking about night conditions at all. The installation is done in daytime and the image looks good. At night, though, an eave or wall right in front of the camera reflects the infrared light back and the image turns into a white fog. Checking the night image at least once after installation shows this problem before an incident happens.
Expert note: Before fixing the camera in place, open the live image on your phone and have a person walk in front of the camera, through the entrance, and to the farthest point of the frame. You will see right then at which point the face can be made out.
- Camera at a height that sees the face
- Separate camera for the critical point
- Entrance camera faces the person arriving
- No backlight
- Night image checked
- Cameras can see below each other
- Rear facade and passages covered
- Camera and cable out of reach
- Neighbor and private areas outside the frame
Blind spots: places the camera cannot see
6. Forgetting the area under the camera itself. There is an area right below every camera that it cannot see. A camera mounted on a wall does not see a person approaching its base, and that person can cover the camera or turn it away. Placing cameras so they can see each other means the camera opposite covers this area.
7. Leaving the rear facade and side passages empty. The front facade and entrance are usually well planned, but the back of the building, places where one can climb onto the roof, side passages, basement windows, and the back of the garden wall are forgotten. These are the places used by people who want to approach the building out of sight.
- Back garden and rear facade of the building
- Basement and ground-floor windows
- Points where one can climb onto the roof or balcony
- Parking lot and vehicle access area
- Room or cabinet where the recorder is kept
Physical protection and privacy
8. Leaving the camera and cable within reach. A camera that can be reached by hand can be turned, painted over, or removed. An exposed cable can be cut. Cameras are mounted at heights that cannot be reached, impact-resistant dome models are preferred at low points, and cables are run through conduit or pipe. The recorder is also kept in a locked cabinet.
9. Seeing the neighbor's property and private areas. A camera that sees the neighbor's window, garden, or more of the public street than necessary can lead to both complaints and legal problems. Camera recordings are personal data under Law No. 6698 ( KVKK ). Limit the frame to your own area, and if needed, block some zones with the camera's privacy mask feature. Cameras are not placed in areas such as toilets and changing rooms. Consult a specialist about your legal obligations.
A practical plan for correct placement
Draw a simple sketch of the building and mark the entrances, exits, where valuables are kept, and all points that can be approached from outside. For each point, write the camera's task and its distance to the target. Once the distance and task are clear, you can check the lens and resolution with a camera distance tool.
Watch the recordings for a few days after installation. Can a person pass between the cameras without being seen? Is the night image usable? Can faces be made out at points such as the safe or the door? This check shows whether the plan works in reality, not just on paper.
If you already have a system, you may not need to replace everything. Often, correcting the angle of a few cameras, adding a separate narrow-angle camera at one entrance, and moving a camera that reflects infrared light by a few centimeters noticeably improves how usable the recordings are. Do not forget to redraw the motion detection zones on the recorder to match the cameras' new angles.
Review the placement once a year. A tree in the garden grows, a sign blocks the frame, a new wall is built, or the layout of the business changes. A system with no blind spots on installation day can develop new blind spots over time.
During the site survey, Desa Bilişim walks through the building with this eye and states the task of each camera point in the written quote.
Frequently asked
How many meters high should a security camera be mounted?
There is no single right height. The camera should be too high to reach by hand, but not so low that it looks at the target at too steep an angle. At entrances where identification is wanted, a height is chosen at which the camera looks at the target slightly from above.
How many cameras are needed so there are no blind spots?
The number of cameras varies with the shape of the building, the number of entrances and what you want to see at each point. Marking the entrances and approach routes on a sketch and assigning a task to each one reveals the number needed.
What should I do if my camera sees my neighbor's garden?
Turn the camera toward your own area or cover that region with the camera's privacy mask feature. Recording someone else's property can lead to both a complaint and a legal problem; consult an expert for details.
Are your cameras looking in the right place?
Let's walk through your building together and put in writing the blind spots of your existing cameras and the points that need to be added.
