IP Cameras — Types, ONVIF, RTSP and PoE

IP cameras are the default new-build choice for everything beyond very small sites, and they are slowly displacing analogue HD on retrofits too. This section gets you fluent in the protocols, form factors and power options behind every IP-CCTV decision.

What you will cover

The lessons start with form factor — bullet, dome, turret, PTZ — and how housing rating (IP66, IP67, IK10) maps to environment. ONVIF profiles (S, T, G) are explained alongside the practical reality that not every “ONVIF compatible” camera works smoothly with every NVR. RTSP stream URLs, the difference between primary and substreams, and the bandwidth implications of H.264 vs H.265 are walked through with real captures.

Power and addressing

PoE class (802.3af, at, bt) and the wattage budget per camera, especially with built-in heaters and IR illuminators, is one of the most common spec mistakes — this section makes the maths concrete. IP addressing, subnetting on a dedicated camera VLAN, and the role of DHCP versus static-IP commissioning round out the network half. This IP cameras module is part of the parent CCTV Course on bhcourses.ie, which steps from camera basics through to full-site VMS deployment. The full version of this lesson, with vendor-specific notes for Hikvision, Dahua and Axis, is on the IP Cameras module on bhcourses.com.

Tooling

SADP, IC Realtime Config Tool, ONVIF Device Manager and a basic RTSP viewer (VLC works) are the four tools every IP-CCTV installer should have on a USB stick — each is demonstrated in context.