is a method to compensate for bright spots in the picture. It is also important to consider whether there are bright spots in the picture such as car headlights which can make identification of the vehicle registration or model impossible. This can also be a major problem where it is necessary to identify a person who is moving from bright daylight into artficial daylight. This could result in the subject becoming an unidentifiable silhouette.

Cameras are available with either color or monochrome image sensors. Monochrome cameras are typically referred to as black and white because video image they produce is in shades of gray. Only black and white CCD cameras have the ability to utilize IR infrared lighting. Also, even without infrared lighting, a monochrome camera will generally perform better in low light conditions than will a color camera equipped with a comparable CCD imager, lens, and quality of manufacture.

A bullet design refers to a camera with a cylindrical shape using an inline video imaging chip (rather than a board design). These cameras are sometimes also called "lipstick cameras" or "inline CCD cameras."