Darkness not a problem as security lighting will do the job.
When the security lights come on then the camera will probably be blinded until it compenates for the sudden change in brightness. This means you will lose video for a while. Depending on the camera this could be as long as five seconds at the very moment you need to see what is happening.
Providing there is enough illumination ( light or infra red ) for the camera to see then use PIR motion detection to mark the recording and leave the light level as is until a clear image of the motion and people has been recorded.