Pentax day/night lenses in a small Victory for public area monitoring

Pentax lenses have been specified for round the clock surveillance in Victoria Park in the Tower Hamlets area of East London.  At just under 90 hectares, the park covers a massive area, especially for this part of the capital.  Managing its assets as well as the wellbeing of the people who use the park is a major undertaking.

It’s a favourite destination for joggers and young families who use the adventure playground, ornamental gardens, tennis courts and bowling green.  The park’s two ornamental lakes also represent an irresistible attraction for children, who are fine while feeding the ducks but can easily and quickly get into trouble too.

The first 6-camera phase was commissioned in late June and the lens complement comprises Pentax’s new 8~144mm day/night motorized lens.

From a public safety point of view, the park closes after dark and it becomes harder to monitor potential danger and anti-social activities after hours.  While the gates are shut people will frequently jump the park railings to gain access, and these people range from fairly harmless joggers to rowdy youths whose actions are often less benign.

The deployment of effective day/night lenses was crucial.

In the past, day/night surveillance required manual re-focusing or the engagement of pre-sets to cope with the change of light level and type of lighting.  The lengthy (and not foolproof) procedure was to set up the lens at night-time under IR lighting with the iris fully open.  Then with the arrival of daylight (which in changing from the IR to a visible part of the spectrum would bring about a shift in focal point) one could usually hope that the shift would be countered by the fact that the iris would close somewhat, and the resulting increase in the depth of field would compensate.

Of course, the result was more difficult to achieve with zoom lenses, owing to the various focal lengths in its zoom range, and the shift in focal point (focus shift) being much more varied.

The Pentax 8~144mm day/night zoom lens can successfully deal with all wavelengths – from daylight into IR (up to 900nm) - and remain focused anywhere within this range.  This lens is unusual in that it achieves its day/night performance purely through optical technology.  Lenses which mechanically focus the rear optic achieve focus only in the light bandwidth to which they are set. Indeed, this is the only high quality zoom lens in the market which will stay in focus regardless of the type or mixture of lighting available.

The installation was carried out by Rainham-based CCTV specialists Comfort Zone.  The company’s track record since its establishment in 1991 has won a huge list of blue-chip clients in the area of cutting-edge communication and surveillance projects. The list includes 16 regional and London Borough authorities, Customs & Excise, the LSE, The BBC and the Metropolitan Police – as well as a number of Middle Eastern governments.

Victoria Park is about 150 years old and in that time there have been surprisingly few serious incidents.  That said, Tower Hamlets Council takes its duties towards public safety very seriously.  The Council maintains a human security presence in the park with Parks Patrols and security guards.  However, with 86 hectares to cover, the provision of effective CCTV provides an additional and essential tool in ensuring the continual safety and enjoyment of park users.