The difference between a camera system that helps and one that just fills a hard drive is almost entirely placement and power. Plenty of people have eight cameras and still can't identify anyone, because every one of them is mounted high, wide, and pointed at a driveway at night.
Cover the choke points, not the whole property
Two well-placed cameras beat eight bad ones. Prioritize the front door, the driveway entry, and any secondary door or gate — the places someone must pass through. Mount at seven to nine feet: high enough to be out of reach, low enough to capture a face rather than the top of a hat.
Wired PoE is worth it
A single Cat6 run carries both power and video, which means no batteries, no Wi-Fi dropouts, and no dead camera on the one night it mattered. Battery and Wi-Fi cameras are fine as a supplement or where cable genuinely can't be run, but for a permanent system we run cable. Our CCTV installation work is built around that.
Night and weather performance
Most incidents happen in the dark, so night performance matters more than daytime resolution. Look for a decent sensor and either good infrared or an integrated white light for color at night. Up here, also check the operating temperature range — sub-zero mornings are hard on cheap hardware — and mount under an eave where possible to keep snow and direct sun off the lens.
Storage, retention, and where it lives
An NVR on site with a surveillance-rated drive gives you two to four weeks of retention without a subscription and keeps working when the internet doesn't. Put it somewhere not obvious — a stolen recorder takes the evidence with it — and back critical footage up off site if the property is a business.
Aim them at your own property
Point cameras at your property, not into neighbors' windows or across their yard, and be careful with audio recording, which has stricter rules than video. For businesses, posted notice and thought about where cameras don't belong keeps you out of trouble.
When to bring in a professional
The parts worth planning are cable routes, power, and mounting height. Those decide whether the footage is usable a year from now.
Call (928) 563-6237 and we'll walk the property and lay out camera positions with you.