Yes we do loads of things with the Local Police,most of them seem to good will, they learn a lot but so do we.
Many crimes go undetected because the CCTV equipment has never been set up correctly ,we see Zoom Cameras left at wide and Speed Domes looking at Gates but the top 3/4 of the shot is the Sky, the Cameras are then squinting because of the light so the intruder becomes a sillouhette. The amount of times I hear “Oh I didn’t know it did that , if only I’d ………
Subject and Traffic percentage heights of the screen used to be as follow, I think the Home Office still suggests similar figures, but Cameras have more Zoom and more resolution these days and recommendations were drawn up when Hi-Res was 420TVL
The following are based on percentage of screen height
10% classed as Traffic Observation (sees colour of Car but not make or model)
35% still classed as Traffic observation but identifies make & model of or car or gender of person.
80% Classed as Recognition, this is when you can say ” I know who that is”
120% Classed as identification,this is when the image is good but no one has seen the subject before and is usually identified later by the Police. This means that 20% of an intruder is missing from the shot usually the feet up.
Our Zoom and Speed Dome Cameras can easily meet the 120% at distances in excess of 30 Metres, our top end products can achieve the 200% level, this is suggested now by many Crime Prevention Officers as they have taken the time to check out the latest CCTV technology, even though not an official percentage it is being recommended, 200% level means that top of the head to waist is filling the screen.
Recently we had images using the 200% method, an armed robber with a sawn off shotgun, wearing a jump suit and a Balaclava with just eye holes cut entered a building his head and chest filled the screen, her face was covered but Police still made an arrest based on just this image, we hold the copyright on this shot and will show it but not on line.
Again all the above is a good rule of thumb even with fixed cameras, ” wide shot small subject,, simply move them closer” “Narrow shot large subject good recognition”.