I know home security has been discussed to near nausea but I'm not finding much searching for PTZ cameras.

I have my home security system complete, both indoor and outdoor and I'm happy with it. Indoors have the standard Ademco products, Vista 20P with most rooms having motion, all openings have sensors, all rooms with glass break detectors plus Co and smoke detectors with about a week of battery back-up. Not bullet proof but pretty secure. Outdoor have bright solar flood lights both front and back of the house, yard is fenced with sensors on the gates and motion detectors. I actually live in an area of very little crime but the drug epidemic is getting scary, a lot of weird shit going on.

Anyway I want to start now on an outdoor video security system, 2 cameras in the back and 2 in the front. Basically I want them to cover the perimeter of the fence. Inside the fence as well but mainly the fence itself. Both the front and back yards are 95 feet by about 120 feet. I was thinking of 2 PTZ cameras each side of the house spaced evenly. Each camera would have to cover an area about 60 feet by 100 feet. Set them up on a constant scan with motion detection, zooming, and tracking. I have the solar floods but in the winter they won't last all night so I probably need some type of night vision. Can't stress this enough but I want to buy a complete system because, as you probably can tell, I know nothing about this. Been googling my ass off but not really getting anywhere. I don't want anything super elaborate but I want good equipment that will deliver clear video. Wiring will be a bitch so solar and wireless would be great but I'm not finding much equipment like this. Do cameras like this exist? Any equipment suggestions or comments would be greatly appreciated.

PTZ cameras are over-hyped/rated.
Unless you are personally monitoring them and adjusting them they are not much value (over fixed).
Just use cameras with the appropriate lens placed in the appropriate space and you will be better off (to cover your desired area).
In actual use PTZ cameras make up a very small percentage of the market - partially because they cost more but mostly because they are not as practical as they seem.
Also if you are serious about this area then forget about wireless.

How do you calculate the proper lens for viewing say 70 ft of fence at 100 ft away?

quote:

Originally posted by 08 Cayenne:
How do you calculate the proper lens for viewing say 70 ft of fence at 100 ft away?

Glad you asked.

https://calculator.ipvm.com/

What you want is a vari-focal camera.
Depending on how much 'resolution' you need at the distance will tell you what camera to get.
If you are looking for "facial recognition" quality then on average the PPF (pixel-per-foot) needs to be around 40 or greater > at the distance you desire.
In some cases with very far distances an Optical Zoom (PTZ) can be very beneficial.
Otherwise a fixed/vari-focal (usually a "bullet") will work out well.

OK, I've been studying this for weeks and this is what I'm leaning towards. Does it sound OK?

Backstreet Surveillance
Four cameras, HD 4 MP, 150 ft color night vision, 2.7 to 12 motorized zoom, bullet style. I think its a WINIC.

8 channel NVR with 4T hard drive, in case I want to add cameras later

Cat 5 outdoor direct burial cable

Basically plug & play, cost is about $2k.

PTZ's are becoming has-been's

The newest (and to me much better solution) are the multi-sensor cameras where you will have 3 or 4 camera lenses in one enclosure which can give you near 360 degree coverage.

Corporations are moving to higher resolution 360* cameras over PTZs as well. My store now has 4 360* cameras in the last remodel. we've never had PTZs.