Tips on setting up your trail Camera

So, looking to get some serious pictures with your game camera this year? Every year, hundreds of amazing pictures are taken with trail cameras. In order to help you make the most out of your trail camera, I will give you some tips here to help you accomplish your goal. Whether you are simply a nature lover with a photographic eye, or an avid sportsman scouting this season’s big buck, these tips should help you get the best pictures possible with your trail camera.

 First off, one of the first things people fail to remember when they set up their camera is to suppress their odor before they go out. Yes, unfortunately, many people go out in normal clothes and shoes, leaving their scent all over everything in the neighborhood.  There are few things that wave a red flag to game like human scent all over an area. Common sense alone tells us that the area that smells like us is going to be avoided like the plague by all the animals we want pictures of. So deodorize! And don’t go back every three days to check the pictures! Give the area time to “cool down”. Wait a week and a half before checking or downloading your pictures.

Also, remember to place your camera in a place where you can get the game to walk by slowly.  Watering holes are an excellent place. Usually game will stop to drink, offering many opportunities for pictures and/or video. Another good choice is a bait spot, like a salt block or corn feeder. Here, game will slow down or stop completely to eat, and you will have a much better chance of catching some great photos. Just don’t forget, the same thing goes for bait that goes for your camera. Don’t set up your bait in your smelly everyday clothes… deodorize so the corn doesn’t smell like you!

If you can, try not to set up your camera in a place where the game will have to walk right by it. Maybe put it up high. Or, put it overlooking a large creek bed that has buck rubs in it. Don’t set it RIGHT next to that deer trail you have been watching… this will increase the likelihood of your game forgoing that route for a safer one.  

Also, remember the flash range on your camera, and set it up accordingly. Just as you don’t want to have a bunch of dark pictures, you don’t want it to be so close that all you get is a white flash in the picture.