Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Gear Forum :: Trail camera
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Author | Message Text | ||
Unas10 |
I am interested in something for my back yard. I am curious about my night time visitors, but not curious enough to throw buckets of cash around. Some info that might be relevant: My yard is about 80' x 120' with woods on three sides and the house on the other. After the last wind storms, I only have three widely spaced trees in the yard itself. An Acer Chromebook is what I have for computer capabilities. Thanks in advance for the help. |
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Savage Voyageur |
I put up a Arlo home camera system on my house doors last summer. It was cool to see the various animals walking around. Cats, dogs, fox, squirrels, possum, raccoon, deer, rabbits, birds. The usual suspects. |
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sns |
Trail Cam Pro |
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Jaywalker |
One piece of advice I'll offer is spend some time practicing with it - set it up, walk back and forth in front, then check out the images. They do vary on how fast they trigger (faster is better, or the animal/thief may walk past before the photo). Also getting the right frame - I've had photos of deer ears or deer feet when not careful enough. Also watch for swaying leaves, pine needles or weeds as they can trigger the images. Think like a trapper when you are setting it up. |
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Heyfritty |
Pointing the camera east or west can cause some photo issues caused by the sun. The ideal direction is anywhere from ENE to WNW (to the north) If possible, you get much better photos if you can set it up where a trail is funneled through a narrow spot(for deer at least). Set the camera up about 3’ above ground. I have never set a camera too low, but have set them up too high. Always set the camera on video mode. It’s much more interesting. You should decide if you want 10 second or 30 second videos. (Those are the two choices my cameras offer). I agree that you don’t need to spend much money to get excellent photos. My most expensive camera was $64. Fritty |
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Unas10 |
Fritty, what was the brand of the $64 camera? How long ago did you purchase it? How much did you use it? Would you buy another if you wanted one more camera for a newly found trail? |
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Heyfritty |
I bought that one about 3 years ago and the others a year or more before. The $64 one is set in the same spot all year. I originally set it up in May and get up there to check it in mid October. The batteries typically last that long. But it takes less than 100 videos. One area for you to consider, is that all of my cameras have a motion sensing range of 40’ or less(and realistically around 25’). They also have a 1 second reaction time that does miss some deer. I assume more expensive cameras are better. Those factors aren’t that important to me. Another thing...new models seem to come out all the time and I don’t generally see the exact same camera for sale year after year. Good luck in your search. Fritty |