A new optical distortion model is proposed, to recover the ideal rectified image for camera calibration. This method is applied as a preprocessing step of a vanishing point calibration procedure that is proved to get a sufficient level of precision for video surveillance applications. Some experimental results are referred in the paper to demonstrate the possibility of 3D model projection from multiple camera views as well as integration of different optical sensors (planar lens and fish eye panoramic cameras). Performance criteria are defined in terms of direct and inverse transformations between the image plane and the 3D reference system in the scene, by using 3D model projection.