As you start to plan a new security camera system on your site, you will have to decide whether to use cameras with optical or digital zoom systems. While both these cameras will help you monitor and protect your site, they do have different pros and cons. Read on to learn more. 

Optical Zoom Security Cameras: What to Know

Optical zoom cameras use lenses that physically move to focus. These lenses work like binoculars. The camera can adjust its focus to make images clearer even from a distance.

So, for example, if someone breaks into your site, then you can zoom the camera onto their body to take a better picture of their face. The camera will change focus as you adjust it to produce a clear and sharp picture.

Security cameras with optical zoom produce enhanced images. You get clearer pictures both at close quarters and at a distance. This clarity makes it easier to use your camera footage if you have a problem on-site. For example, a camera with optical zoom will show a person's face more clearly; it can take a readable image of a number plate from a distance.

However, optical zoom cameras do have some downsides. If you zoom in to take an image, then you might lose some of your overall viewing angles. As the camera zooms in, it loses some peripheral images.

Plus, you can't use your camera's optical zoom features after it has recorded a video. You use this feature as it records.

Digital Zoom Security Cameras: What to Know

If you use a camera with digital zoom, then your zoom function works on an image the camera has already taken. You can make the picture bigger to look at parts of it by using the camera's software.

These effects are similar to those you'd get if you were to enlarge a photo on a computer. The zooming function makes the image's pixels bigger.

Unlike optical zoom functions, digital zoom lets you enlarge parts of a picture or video without losing surrounding images. You can also use this function after your camera has recorded footage.

However, pixelation can be a problem here. Digital zoom cameras don't produce such sharp and clear results. For example, images might look blurred and out of focus when you try to enlarge them to look at details.

For more advice on which type of cameras to use on your site, talk to security camera systems services.

Share