View A Face 3000 Meters Away

For non metric-speakers: 3000 meters = 1.86 miles

wow!

I'd also think anything having to look that far out would make for a pretty unstable picture as any little vibration would cause shake. You'd probably have to have a floating platform for mounting. We're humans, we can probably do it, but won't be cheap.

I'm not saying this is an unsolvable problem, but it IS going to be one with a very expensive solution. Can you clarify if this is for a fixed location, or if some kind of PTZ control is required? Do you need 24/7 coverage of the location, or only daytime coverage? What is the area like in terms of lighting/contrast/etc.? What kind of weather or atmospheric interference is common in the area? What are the end-user expectations (eg: it will work 100% of the time, it will work in ideal conditions, etc.).

The lens math on this is fairly easy. The solution is more complex.

I suggest you step back and redefine your project. Do you really need to see the face at 3000m? Would the presence of an individual in an unauthorized area be sufficient? You could dispatch security to determine who the person really is. Putting cameras at main entrance points could provide facial images.

You might find some insight from SightLogix.

Wow, Aaron, that's quite a leap. The tightest shot you'd get would be a 4.6 degree lens, resulting in an HFOV of about 750 feet wide. FAR beyond anything that Sightlogix (or any analytics system for that matter) is going to have the slightest shot at detecting.

You've gone from "face recognition" to about .4 ppf in your recommendation there. You're correct in that they might not *really* need to see a full face, but they do still probably at least need to know it's an actual person...

I think Vummii is worth a look, hat tip to Skip for bringing them up.

Their best model for super long range imaging appears to be Discoverii, specifically the 3000 model.

Here's what they claim for distances at night in sheer darkness:

And here's a video example:

While it's not delivering faces at 3000 meters, it's pretty fantastically long, considering the pitch blackness it is doing it in.

Here's a classic from another forum - 16MP Avigilon camera with Canon EF-mount Sigma 300-800mm f/5.6 lens (list at about $8000) and 2X teleconverter for an effective length of 600-1600mm at f/11:

Won't quite get you facial recognition, even at half the distance, but it's sure a good start :)

Recall that the Avigilon Pro cameras use the Canon EOS lens system - being designed primarily for use on a DSLR, the lens would not have power zoom, but it would have autofocus (I don't know if the Avigilon camera takes advantage of this - the lens has the AF motors, but the AF sensing and control itself is normally sourced in the camera).

The lens is f/5.6, according to the spec; the 2x converter makes it f/11.

You'll recall our thread about f-stops being simple math: the max aperture stays the same, but when you increase the focal length, the f-stop changes accordingly - two stops for a 2x, one stop with a 1.4x.

To wit: at 800mm and f/5.6, the aperature will have a diameter of 800/5.6, or about 142.86mm, or inversely, 800/142.86 = 5.6 (plus a bit for rounding errors). Double the focal length, but the aperture stays the same, and you get 1600/142.86 = 11(ish).

While that won't allow a lot of light, keep in mind that these cameras also have a full-frame 35mm sensor, which can collect a lot more light than your average 1/3" or 1/2" CCTV sensor, so what light you DO get, will provide a far cleaner signal off the chip, and allow for more amplification.

There are power zoom lens options:

Fujifilm D60x12.5R3DE-V41

12.5 mm - 750 mm (60x), 25 mm - 1500 mm (60x) with 2x extender (provided)

F3.8 - T1500 (Equivalent to F1500) F7.6 - T3000 (Equivalent to F3000) with 2x extender (provided)

"C" mount, Format: 1/2"

Monster Zoom CCTV Lens

Focal Length: 10 - 1000mm / 20 - 2000mm (2EXT)
Iris Range: F4.0 - 256 / F8.0 - 512(2EXT)
Format: 1/2"
Mount: C

Regarding the LinkedIn thread, that's why I barely look at any of the other CCTV groups/discussions on LI.

Any basic question gets pummeled with useless replies "Dear sir I suggest you check out our product Bob Camera.". And then the suggested product fits between 0 and -4 of the key criteria that the poster was aksing about, or even better has all but non-existant online info.

What about Sony XIS?

Good info. Thanks!

I think the correct H Sensor size is actually 5.37mm. I noticed a month ago that the number was too large, but didn't say anything then because you were at the 'bottom range' and I didn't want to make it worse. But then I realized the smaller the sensor (assuming the # of pixels is constant), the greater the PPF, so now ~60 PPF

Required Distance: 3000m Focal length: 1680mm

H Sensor Size: 5.37mm (actual 1/2.7" sensor format width)

HFOV = Distance / (Focal Length / H Sesnsor Size)

9.58m (31.4 ft) = 3000m / (1680mm / 5.37mm) PPF = H Resolution / HFOV

61 PPF = 1920 px / 31.4 ft