Trail Cam Features

This is to explain important features most good trail cameras have, and tricks I use to make my life easier.
 

Ok, this helps a ton, why cameras have them is simple – after you set the camera on a tree etc you switch on the laser to check if the camera is pointed correctly. HOWEVER in the day you can’t see the red dot easily, I do this – I put my hand close to the laser and walk backwards and see if the beam is correctly pointed, keeping the laser dot on my hand as I walk away. If it’s wrong I reset the laser till the location is correct. As a norm I set my cameras about 38cm off the ground (KNEE HEIGHT) with the laser dot hitting the ground at about 10m. This is a pretty good angle to use and the camera fires pretty easily on sensing movement.
 

This is a good one, many good quality cameras have this feature; in South Africa it isn’t so necessary because we don’t hunt lands that have lots of hunters on them like the USA and hunting government land, here we don’t have such things, and all land is private so we know who is on our property (or at least most times anyway). So – a trail cam runs a less of a risk of being stolen. But anyway, good cameras have PASSWORDS, every time you set it or look at photos you need to punch in a password, if you don’t you can’t see or use the camera at all. It is NO use to anybody who steals it – but to the general public they won’t know that till they take it, and later find out it is of no use to them.

Again good cameras have these viewers, you can view your photos in the field on the camera (same principal as digital cameras) without having to take out the card to see them in a digital camera, computer or on a TV. If you view a photo on TV most times the bottom line wont show with all the information on times, moon and temp etc. Trail cams come with cords / USB cables to view pictures on computer and television.

PHOTO SNAP SELECTION/ QUALITY OF PHOTO/ VIDEOS

Most cameras have this neat feature, you can select what you need, either to take 1,2 or 3 photos each time after 1 minute etc, and also it gives you the choice to film a video or a normal still photo, a simple feature but very nice. It also gives you the chance to film in low or high or advanced resolution, so the quality of your pictures can be better for printing or publishing in a magazine etc.

For videos remember to put camera on a low resolution, if you don’t the video will fill a normal memory card in a second, but on low resolution you will be able to film a few times before the card is full.

By switching on the camera, you can then set the camera like you wish with regards to those headings above, then walk away and after 4 and a bit minutes the camera will activate and go into standby made, you don’t have to set it on AUTO etc, just switch it on so that it shows the camera is set on the date etc, and it will activate itself after a while and go on standby all on its own.

GOOD CAMERAS HAVE THIS FEATURE

Now we are cooking! – this is a very important feature, and remember quality cameras use INFRA RED flash features at night NOT WHITE FLASH!  These IR flash cameras will not spook an animal as it shows no burst of white at night, the camera looks normal, with nothing showing of any evidence it took a photo, also this is good especially if a person is walking nearby – he wont see the camera take a photo- if you used a white flash he will see the camera fire and chances are he will steal your camera also!!!!

When you stand near the camera outside; it blows good clean clear air and you won’t get better! Have a really nice happy day!

------------------------------------------------