Quick Links
Have you just bought your first wild game trail camera? Congratulations! These are our best tips on how to use a wildgame trail camera.
A trail camera can make your tracking easier and increase your chances of a successful hunt. But the big question is: What should you do to get the best result from your new wild game trail camera?
Step-by-Step: How to Use a Wildgame Trail Camera
If you want to get clear and detailed photos and videos from your trail camera, you need to understand it and install it correctly.
Understand Its Features
The key to getting great results from your trail camera is by understanding its features. The first thing you need to do is understand your trail camera’s essential components and their use.
A trail camera’s main features include the flash type, trigger speed and recovery, detection range, and battery life.
Flash Type
Wildgame trail cameras come with three different flash types. They include white flash, red or no glow, and no glow flash. White flash is similar to one in DSLR and takes sharp color pictures both during the day and night.
However, this type of flash tends to scare wild animals and makes the trail camera easily detectable. On the other hand, no glow cameras use infrared light invisible to both animals and humans, but they don’t deliver high quality and detailed videos and photos as is the case with white flash.
Red or low glow has some features of no-glow and white flash. Understating the type of flash that your wild game camera comes equipped with will help you know where to install it and when to use it to get the best results.
Trigger Speed and Recovery
Another vital feature to consider is the trigger speed and recovery time. Trigger speed refers to the amount of time elapsed from when your wild game trail camera first senses motion until it captures a photo or video of what causes the movement.
On the other hand, recovery speed refers to the time required for the camera to rearm itself and take another triggered photo after capturing the first photo. Understanding your trail camera trigger speed and recovery time will help you make an informed decision when setting it up.
Detection Range
Detection range refers to the maximum distance to which the camera will detect movement and take a video or photo. Understanding this feature will help you determine where to place your trail camera to get the best results.
Battery Life
Another often overlooked feature is battery life. Battery life is an essential factor to consider because it determines the number of trips you will make to replace the battery or check the SD.
Prepare Your Trail Camera
As members of the military say, preparation is everything. The same applies to using a wildgame trail camera. To avoid disappointment the next time you check your game camera, ensure that you make adequate preparation before installing it in the wild.
Some of the preparation you need to make before placing your trail camera include:
Checking Batteries
You need to check the battery to see if they are in good shape. If the batteries are depleted, charge them to full capacity or replace them.
Check the Camera’s Settings
The last thing you want is to find out that your wild game trail camera did not take videos and photos as per your specifications. To avoid this, you need to check the camera’s setting and make adjustments if necessary before installing it.
When reviewing your trail camera settings, essential things to consider include time and date, trigger speed, sensitivity, and capture mode.
Check the SD Card
The SD card is a very crucial part and determines whether you will get the information you are looking for or not. Therefore, before installing your trail camera, you need to check the SD card to see if it is in good shape to store all videos and photos taken.
It’s recommend that you format your SD before you install your camera.
Install Your Trail Camera
How and where you install your trail camera will determine the quality of the result, you will get. There are various things you need to consider when setting up your trail camera in the wild. They include what you are expecting to capture and your camera abilities.
For instance, if your camera has a short detection range, you should place it close to where your target animal is likely to pass.
Place your trail camera where it is likely to capture the wild animal that you are targeting. Placement includes close to their food sources, primary water source, or breeding area. The direction where your trail camera is facing also matters a lot.
For instance, if your trail camera is facing the sun, it may activate the heat sensor and end up capturing a lot of shots of the sun until the SD is full. So, when placing your wild game trail camera, try putting it facing north or south.
Other important factors to consider when installing your trail camera include distance, height, and security. The distance between the trail camera and the subject should not be too close or too far. When it is too close, it will take mega shots that are difficult to analyze.
On the other hand, if the camera is too far, it will take small pictures that are difficult to see. We recommend you place your wild game trail camera at the same height as your target animal’s chest when it comes to height.
To protect your camera from thieves, place it where it is not easily detectable and secure it will a steel cable to make it difficult for thieves to steal it.
Activate the Camera and Test It
Once you have decided on the location and installed your trail camera, the final step is to activate the trail camera and test it. Test the camera capturing photos both during the day and night to see if they meet your specification. Make necessary adjustments if you are not impressed.
Final Thoughts
Using a wild game trail camera is not difficult as many people think. However, to get the best results from your wild game camera, you need to understand its features and place it in the correct location. These simple tips for how to use a wildgame trail camera will help you get the best results.