Where to put home security cameras so they can identify someone

Short version: give every camera one job, mount face cameras around 7 to 9 feet high at a shallow angle, use a narrow view for the things that matter most, and check every camera at night before you call it done.

1. Decide what each camera is for

Before buying anything, list the jobs: identify people at the front door, read license plates on the driveway, watch the back door, keep an eye on packages, see the side yard. One camera rarely does more than one of these well. A single wide camera covering the whole front of the house will show that someone walked up, but probably not who.

2. Know how much detail the job needs

Security professionals measure detail as pixels across each foot of the scene. The international standard for video surveillance, IEC 62676-4, was revised in 2025:

What you want to tell	Detail needed (approximate)
That a person or vehicle is present	under 10 pixels per foot
Who someone is, or what a license plate says	about 150 pixels per foot (500 pixels per meter, the 2025 “Validate” level)

Older guidance, from the 2014 edition, put identification at about 76 pixels per foot. The 2025 revision doubled that, because footage at the old level often wasn't clear enough once night lighting and video compression were factored in.

Pixels per foot depend on the camera's resolution and how wide its view is at that distance. A 4K camera with a wide lens can still fall short of identification ten feet away, while a modest camera with a narrow view can reach it. That's why the view matters more than the megapixels on the box.

3. Mount face cameras lower than you think

• Height: around 7 to 9 feet is a good range for seeing faces while staying out of easy reach. Under a 12-foot eave, a camera looks down at hats and hoods.
• Angle: keep the downward angle shallow, and place the camera where people walk toward it, such as along the front walk or facing the door from the side.
• Doorbells: video doorbells catch faces well because they sit at chest height. Pair one with a higher camera that covers the porch and packages.

4. License plates need their own camera

Reading plates takes a narrow field of view aimed at the spot where cars slow down or stop, a fast shutter to avoid motion blur, and a shallow angle to the plate. At night, plates reflect infrared light and turn into a white blur on ordinary cameras. Dedicated plate cameras, or specific settings, solve this.

5. Plan for night first

• Infrared bounce: keep cameras clear of soffits, gutters and walls that reflect their own infrared light back into the lens.
• Glass: never put a camera behind a window. At night its infrared reflects off the glass and you see only the reflection.
• Glare and backlight: avoid aiming at streetlights or headlights, and use cameras with good wide dynamic range at doors that face bright light.
• Light helps: a motion-activated porch light can turn grainy black-and-white footage into clear color.

6. Cover the approaches, not just the doors

Think about how someone would reach each door: the driveway, the side gate, the back of the garage. A camera covering the path toward a door sees the face; a camera pointed straight down at the door often sees only the back of a head on the way out.

7. Record locally and keep it running

Record to a device inside the home so footage survives an internet outage and doesn't depend on a subscription. Put the recorder and network on battery backup. Turn on person and vehicle detection so alerts mean something. Keep the recorder somewhere a burglar won't easily find it.

8. Test it before you trust it

Walk the property during the day and after dark while someone watches the recording. Can you read your own face at the door? A plate in the driveway? If not, adjust before the installer leaves.