Clear video images in low-light scenarios are a must for many security installations. With the abundance of options on the market, however, it can be confusing to figure out which kind of technology to use. Here, we take the mystery out of low-light technology and give you practical information to help you see more with nighttime surveillance.

Starlight

For an environment where there’s some degree of lighting present, finding a camera that will render useful video won’t be a problem. The challenge is when there is no light at all. To combat this challenge, our portfolio encompasses two different kinds of Starlight technology, each with different levels of light sensitivity. Light sensitivity is defined by lux, a unit of illuminance. To give you some comparison, full daylight is 10,000 lux while a full moon is full moon 0.1 lux. A quarter moon emits 0.01 lux, and a moonless sky is illuminated by 0.001 lux of starlight.

Basic Starlight, our most cost-efficient Starlight option, offers good low-light performance with illumination down to 0.005-0.009 lux.

Starlight+ has the best low-light performance in the Starlight suite of products: illumination down to 0.001-0.004 lux. It is fantastic for very dark environments, areas that are not well-lit without ambient lighting. The PoE 2MP starlight + camera (IPC-HFW3241E-AS) low light illumination can reach 0.002 Lux.

Warm-Light Full-color

Sometimes you don’t want your security system to be a secret. Cameras with warm-light LEDs emit warm light into the field of view to allow color images in dark scenes. It also uses an F1.0 large aperture, which can collect 2.5 times the light compared to an F1.6 aperture. Warm light has the added benefits of being a visual deterrent and also providing security lighting.

Our new warm-light, Full-color technology provides details in bright color with a large aperture. The 4MP ePoE camera (IPC-HDBW5449R-ASE-LED) has warm light LEDs and large aperture built into it. With an illumination distance of up to 30 meters, the camera can better handle far-away subjects compared to other low-light cameras. It’s ideal in places with nearly no light at all, such as new construction sites and wooded areas. Smart illumination lets the camera automatically activate the LEDs when ambient light levels fall, this also adjusts the exposure time and LED intensity to prevent overexposing the image. Additionally, advanced image processing decreases noise and reduces smear.

Dual Lens Full-color

If you mind that warm light will cause light pollution, a dual-lens full-color camera is a good choice. Even if there is no warm light to fill light, all new creative designed dual-lens setup turns the dark night color again. One lens records the ambient brightness and the other lens captures abundant color information. Then through Dahua AI image algorithm present vivid image. Photosensitive capacity increased over 50% by the dual sensors, dual-lens full-color camera provides all-day color vision with rich image details and no additional light pollution.

Many Options

Our broad portfolio of low-light solutions lets installers and end-users choose from a variety of different options to best suit their needs. Whether a cost-efficient solution with clear black and warm images, or advanced technology that enables images in color, our cameras make sure you’re not left in the dark.

Learn more about our low-light technology here.