Video Setup
So you’ve got all your cameras, now you need to set them up. Hopefully, you’ve already planned where you want them to go, but if not, you should think about the main areas of access to your house / business. Perhaps you’ve opted of a spy camera, a nanny cam or a camera hidden in a household object – whichever you have, think about the location carefully.
The first thing you need to do is place each camera where you want it, and then check that the picture is good enough, and you can see all that you want to. You will probably need to enlist the help of a family member or friend, so that you can look at the feeds and then tell them if you want the camera moved. This is especially important if you have bought a ‘dome’ (a half sphere that is attached to the ceiling, much as you would see in most department stores these days). You don’t want to drill holes in your ceiling, only to find out that you can’t see what you were expecting to, do you?
What about getting all the images from the cameras? You will probably have one receiver per camera and, although it is possible to configure the system so tat 4 cameras can have their feeds funneled through one receiver, this can be a false economy. You will need to switch between each camera in order to see the different feeds. If you have a dedicated receiver per camera, you can split the feed on the monitor so that you can keep tab on all locations at one time.
All that you have to do now is hook up the receiver to the inputs of whatever device you are going to use to capture the images. This can be a VCR, DVD Recorder, Computer or Personal Video Recorder. You’ll need to follow the manufacturer’s instructions, but it should be as simple as a video cable from the receiver t the ‘Video In’ socket of your chosen recorder.
Record some footage and make sure everything works as you’d expect it. Does the recording work properly? Is there any interference in the picture? Can you make a CD or hard-copy of the footage if you need to?.
If you’ve opted for a system that works over the internet, now is the time to test that too (these allow you to monitor your home while you are away). Login to a friend’s computer and make sure you can see the feeds from all the cameras correctly.
When all of these check out and you are satisfied, you’ll have a 24hr personal security system working for you, whether you’re at home or on holiday.