For day or night surveillance, infrared security cameras will be the thing you need to do the job right. When the infrared security surveillance camera is on during the day, it will show a full color picture. However, it will switch to a black and white mode for nighttime surveillance. The black and white imaging is made possible by many LEDs that have been placed around the lens. Although, this is not the same as thermal cameras, which will use a radiating, heat signature to produce an image. The sensor on the camera is the only thing that will detect the light that is emitted onto objects or in rooms that are dark. A regular security camera cannot give you the same results in viewing low light images as infrared security cameras.