PTZ Cameras

Commonly Asked Questions

What is a PTZ Security Camera?

PTZ stands for Pan Tilt Zoom, where the camera has motorized mechanisms that allow it to rotate up to 360 degrees, tilt up to 180 degrees, and zoom ranging from 4X up to 40X using its optical zoom lens. Whether you are actively monitoring your property or using the preset, tour, or pattern features, a PTZ can greatly assist with surveillance of a large area compared to using security cameras without motorized mechanisms.

Motorized zoom lenses allow the user to enlarge and focus in on fine details such as faces or license plates in a parking lot. The wide variety of Pan Tilt Zoom models that we offer have varying amounts of optical zoom and night vision. When connected to the internet our cameras can be controlled and viewed from anywhere in the world using a computer, phone or tablet.

Some PoE PTZ cameras also support advanced video analytics that allow intelligent detection of intruders and vehicles. Auto Tracking cameras can follow persons of vehicles as they enter or traverse your property. All of these features enable a camera system to cover a large area and provide peace of mind.

Pan Tilt Zoom security cameras can also be used for projects other than security. Some other uses include:

• Live stream cameras for church services or other places of worship
• Time-lapse cameras for recording the construction progress of a building or home
• Live streaming an event such as a concert, baseball game, or lecture to YouTube Live

How do PTZ cameras work?

PTZs have built-in motors that operate to pan, tilt and zoom the camera. Commonly, these cameras connect to a security camera recorder for viewing, recording, and control. PTZ IP cameras are network-based digital versions that can be used as a standalone camera for viewing, live streaming, and recording to an internal memory card.

You can control cameras using several devices:

• Security DVR recorder
• PTZ camera controller
• PC or Mac Computer
• Smartphone or Tablet using mobile apps for iOS and Android

How to choose a Pan Tilt Zoom camera?

There are four main features to consider when shopping for a PTZ for your home or business:

1. Resolution
2. Night Vision Distance
3. Zoom
4. Auto Tracking and Video Analytics

We discuss each of these PTZ camera features in greater detail below.

1. Resolution

How far you can see a face on recorded footage from any security camera or PTZ is determined by its resolution. Security camera resolution is measured in megapixels (MP). The higher the megapixels a camera is, the greater the detail will be allowing you to digitally zoom in and see finer detail in recorded video.

2. Night vision

During the day a camera can see in color, but in complete darkness, it switches to black & white mode. The camera cannot see without having night vision that's provided by infrared LEDs. Pan Tilt Zoom cameras are available with varying degrees of night vision to see in darkness. Usually, the amount of night vision a surveillance camera has is related to the optical zoom power of the camera.

3. Zoom

The amount of zoom a camera has determines the distance you can see clearly on live video. If you're monitoring long distances you may want to consider 25X zoom or more. For shorter distances, there are PTZs ranging from 4X to 12X zoom. When choosing the level of optical zoom you have to ask yourself:

• How far do you want to see when fully zoomed in?
• What type of detail do you want to see at these distances? is it general detail of vehicles or intruders, or is it finer detail like faces or license plates?

To help you make an informed purchasing decision, in each of our camera product descriptions we mention the maximum distance for facial clarity. After actual field testing, we have developed the following table to help understand how far a 1080P HD PTZ Camera can see facial detail with varying degrees of optical zoom.

For further reading, we suggest reading our security camera buying guide to learn the difference between optical zoom and digital zoom.

4. Auto Tracking and Video Analytics

Certain PTZ IP cameras feature intelligent functions like video analytics and auto-tracking. Our PTZ models with Smart Detection provide video analytics to provide intelligent control of when auto-tracking is activated. For example, as shown in the video below, we use a virtual tripwire as the triggering event to start tracking a vehicle that enters a parking lot. For specific types of perimeter security, these two functions can prove useful and eliminate the need for multiple fixed surveillance cameras.