Trail camera questions!

[adeeden]

Ok I know alot of folks have strong feelings about using these things (one way or the other) so lets try to be civil!

Anyway, My lovely wife got me one for christmas. I have read the book/instructions and have figured out how to get the program running, but what I am looking for is tips on actual placement in the woods. I'm in IL and we can not put feed/minerals out under any circumstances so I am limited to true trail type situations.

How far from trails do you all normaly place these things? What height is best for mounting them? Do you set them up on a 90 degree angle from trails or is 45 degree better? I'm really an amatuer on these things and would appreciate any help I can get before I put this thing out!

All tips would be greatly appreciated!

[Gray Buffalo]

Well I can tell you a little story about my brother and his new trail cam. He set it up in the middle of no where with an over size battier and went home. Shortly after that he had a heart attack and had to have a quad bypass. He doing fine but the cam spent 10 weeks in the woods before we went an got it. All the time we were walking to it he was talking about how many pic’s he would have. When we got there we seen he forgot to turn it on. The cam is only as smart as the owner.

     

[Lechwe]

If you can find a good scrape and hang it there you can get some good pictures. I hang mine about waste high or even a little lower. Try not to point them east or west as the sun can mess with them.

Have fun.

[Junglecat]

Telling the brand and model would help a lot.Trigger speed varies greatly on the different cameras.I tend to aim mine up or down the trail.Most of the time I tend to also try to angle mine more in a north or south direction so that the sun will not cause it to activate.Height can vary depending on the terrain in the target area.

[adeeden]

Originally posted by Junglecat:
Telling the brand and model would help a lot.Trigger speed varies greatly on the different cameras.I tend to aim mine up or down the trail.Most of the time I tend to also try to angle mine more in a north or south direction so that the sun will not cause it to activate.Height can vary depending on the terrain in the target area.

That probably would help! It's a wildgame inovations iR4!

[T Sunstone]

Some cameras are triggered right in front of the camera, while others have a wider angle.  I like the wider ones and set it on 20 second video.  The best thing to do, is set it up in your yard and test it.  Come in from the side close then farther out.

[Junglecat]

Sorry I cannot help you any with the Wildgame Innovations cameras.I have the Scoutguard 550s.

[bowmaster12]

i have two of those cameras and also sell them at the store i work at. For the money a very soild cam.  like metioned already try to keep it pointing north or south the sun will trigger the cam as far as distance try to keep it within 5 or 10 yards  a good starting point for hieght is around 3 feet anglen them up or down a trail will work much better than 90 this is tru for most cams even the supper fast triggen ones this way you may get more than one picture of the same deer at different angles good luck enjoy your new tool and share some pics

[bowmaster12]

heres a pic from one of my wildgames
 

[pcappy08]

generally i try to place them around three feet high, facing a trail at a quartering angle this way the animal is in front of the camera eye longer than if it were a 90deg angle, and also agree try to keep it facing north or south as the rising and setting sun will white out pics best of luck

[pcappy08]

generally i try to place them around three feet high, facing a trail at a quartering angle this way the animal is in front of the camera eye longer than if it were a 90deg angle, and also agree try to keep it facing north or south as the rising and setting sun will white out pics best of luck

[wildgame]

not sure on these cameras(im on covert scouting cameras pro staff) but find a pinch point like where a few trails come together or a wood line of a field(if taken pics in a feild stake the camera pointing toward the woods for better light reflection).hung scentbag,oakflats,scraps,late season on any kind of food like cut corn or bean field. 2or3 feet off ground,5-10 feet off your trigger area.try not point toward the ground. A gut pile makes for some cool pics!!

[LC]

I don't own one, so excuse my ignorance, but with all the theft I hear on game cams couldn't you place them higher in a tree aiming down so that it would be tuffer to see or tougher to steal. Is the trigger distance really 10'?

[Marvin M.]

adeedan,

I just put one out -- this is my first one also.  Read a bunch of reviews on them before buying it.  Seems to be really good for the money.  

I ran mine overnight in the house to get a feel for it.  Trigger speed is not real fast, so it does need to be pointing up or down a trail to have a better chance of getting the pic.

I put mine out Saturday at an entrance point in the field behind my house.  I have deer come out into that field a couple of times a week (that I know of) so I'm going to leave it out for a week and see what I get.  Pointed it northwest looking into the brush from just inside the field edge.  Mounted it about two and a half feet up on a small locust.  

It's supposed to be really cold here this week, so I should get some activity in the field to test this thing out.  New learning curve for me, but it should be interesting.

Marvin

[JimB]

You could put them high but I usually put them on a level with the animal.That way,the animal can be far or close and you still get a picture.If the camera is pointed down,you have to be right on the money.

I try to point mine North when possible.

Another very important point is to not have any branches or weeds in front of the camera,within range,that can wave in the wind.These will trigger the camera on a windy day.

A weed growing up in front of the camera could also cause the camera to auto focus on the weed-not the animal.

For the same reasons,don't attach the camera to a flimsy sapling that may also move with the wind.

I have bought silk,Fall leaves from a craft store and used them to camouflage the cameras.Kind of like a leafy suit.I made some "rubber bands" out of 1/4" elastic,stapled the leaves to the band and put that around my camera housing.It was easy to remove and put back on when checking the camera.Just keep the leaves away from the lense.The 3-D leaf affect is a little better than just a camo pattern.

[Buckeye Trad Hunter]

Originally posted by pcappy08:
generally i try to place them around three feet high, facing a trail at a quartering angle this way the animal is in front of the camera eye longer than if it were a 90deg angle, and also agree try to keep it facing north or south as the rising and setting sun will white out pics best of luck

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