Good trail camera?

[Powder]

In the past I've normally bought the low end cameras and have been reasonably satisfied with them. The daylight pictures have been decent enough for me and most have been in use for several years.

My concern is with nighttime pictures. It seems like most of the cameras don't work well at night. I'm not talking about color pics vs. black and white. I'm talking about how 8 out of 10 night pictures are nothing but eyeballs and you can't see the deer. The part that confuses me is how one night picture is great and the next will be bad. The last two cameras I bought were Stealth Cams and they worked great, day or night for the first year. I thought I had solved my problem. Now they are not taking good night pictures anymore.

The cameras are usually on foodplots, saltlicks or bait.

First, am I doing something wrong that is causing this?

Second, what cameras would you recommend knowing my issues? I'm willing to move up and buy 'better' cameras but please don't say Reconyx, or that I should save until I can buy one. It's not going to happen.

 

[bowhunternw]

I have some Moultrie m80's that still work good and a couple year old browning strike force that I really like. Good night pics but have to be within 20 yards at night to be very clear

 

[bueller]

I've found that as the black flash low glow whatever you want to call them cameras have become more popular the quality of night photos has dropped off. They just don't put off enough light for a good capture, especially on an open field/plot where there is no background to "light up". The same cameras take much better night photos in a wooded situation.

 

[4wanderingeyes]

This has been my findings as well. I tend to place my cameras in the food plot, facing towards the woods, on a tree I leave in the food plots to break up an open plot.

 

[Boll Weevil]

I've got a bunch of Moultrie 880s and 990s...like them well enough that I just purchased 2 more. Easy to setup, reliable, long battery life, and take great day + night pictures.

 

[alldaysit]

In the past I've normally bought the low end cameras and have been reasonably satisfied with them. The daylight pictures have been decent enough for me and most have been in use for several years.

My concern is with nighttime pictures. It seems like most of the cameras don't work well at night. I'm not talking about color pics vs. black and white. I'm talking about how 8 out of 10 night pictures are nothing but eyeballs and you can't see the deer. The part that confuses me is how one night picture is great and the next will be bad. The last two cameras I bought were Stealth Cams and they worked great, day or night for the first year. I thought I had solved my problem. Now they are not taking good night pictures anymore.

The cameras are usually on foodplots, saltlicks or bait.

First, am I doing something wrong that is causing this?

Second, what cameras would you recommend knowing my issues? I'm willing to move up and buy 'better' cameras but please don't say Reconyx, or that I should save until I can buy one. It's not going to happen.

Well, I try to buy a reconyx when funds are available, which is never as of lately, but I have two older ones and they are the cats meow. I then buy the dirt cheapest trail cams I can get. I'm talking December January February March sales times, when I can get new in the package cams for less than $30. I then take care of them like they are my reconyx and believe it or not, I haven't thrown a camera away in several years, and they all still work like new. Read a reconyx owners manual and you'll get what I am saying.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[jackpine]

I've got a bunch of Moultrie 880s and 990s...like them well enough that I just purchased 2 more. Easy to setup, reliable, long battery life, and take great day + night pictures.

I've had the same ones for about five years. No problems at all, pics still look good. I only have them out for a couple months out of the year so they haven't had heavy use.

Sent from my XT901 using Tapatalk

 

[buckdeer1]

Check prices at Rogers outdoors,got a pair of 880s with free shipping under 100 each and they have been ok.Also if you want to see test pictures check trailcampro.com they also have good deals on cameras

 

[Natty Bumppo]

I've got a bunch of Moultrie 880s and 990s...like them well enough that I just purchased 2 more. Easy to setup, reliable, long battery life, and take great day + night pictures.

I'll echo these comments. They are all I use and I have had very good luck and longevity with them.

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

We picked up a bunch of moultree flash cams that were refurbed for cheap. Great pics night or day and havent had problems with the flash ever spooking deer.

 

[bueller]

We picked up a bunch of moultree flash cams that were refurbed for cheap. Great pics night or day and havent had problems with the flash ever spooking deer.

white flash?

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

white flash?

yes old school flash cams. Property is private with little intrusion.

 

[bueller]

yes old school flash cams. Property is private with little intrusion.

I always liked the night photos from a good ole white flash. Didn't seem to chase my deer off the plots either.

 

[Powder]

Here are a few examples of what I'm talking about. These were all taken from the same set of pictures/batteries. I'm okay with the bottom pictures but the other two aren't good at all and I can't seem to find any rhyme or reason for it.

 

[browndog]

Powder, I'm going to say that the filter is in front of the lens during those two night pics. Ever have any pinkish pictures during the day?

 

[Powder]

No, the daytime pictures are always just fine. How would the filter be blocking it in the first two but not the last one? Those pictures are in order of when they were taken.

 

[browndog]

No, the daytime pictures are always just fine. How would the filter be blocking it in the first two but not the last one? Those pictures are in order of when they were taken.

The last pic is a day later and when the cam triggered the filter moved so it was not in front of cam lens. The filter should be in front of cam lens during daytime pics and move away from lens for night pics. This will not happen until the cam has a trigger event. How were the batteries in the cam?
I had a Moultrie that did the same thing. Started out with a few black pics at night and weeks later the pink day pics started. No rhyme or reason when it happened, maybe the filter was rubbing on something inside cam to hang it up??

 

[hokiehunter]

How much battery is left affects how good my flash works on my Stealth Cam G30 and Browning Dark Ops. I also miss night pictures due to low battery, but I'll get day pics for several weeks. This is with cheap Amazon batteries.

 

[yoderjac]

I'd say save your money. The low-end ($300 range) Chinese cameras take pictures better than some of the high end cameras. What they high end cameras add is first, reliability and lifespan, and then trigger speed and trigger reliability. Given how you use cameras and what you say is important, the high end cameras won't add much. Reliability is achieved through a number of means, but one is using well proven and tested components. In a fast changing high tech industry, the components proven the most reliable are always a couple generations behind.

My BEC Orions have been running 24/7/365 without fail for more years than most folks game cameras have been in existence. The picture quality was very good for its day but pales compared to the picture quality of some of today's low-end Chinese game cameras. I used to teach a game camera class for the state Hunter Ed instructors but haven't kept up with the low end cameras for a number of years so I won't recommend a specific camera. I will say that night time picture quality is primarily about illumination. Most of the low end cameras are very poorly synchronized between the illumination and the shutter. LEDs are generally ramped up slowly. While this can make black flash versions more visible to deer, the up side is that they work well with slave flashes. If I were you, I'd consider looking into slave flashes. More photons reflecting off the target to the image sensor, the better your picture will be.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[jsasker007]

Also, some cameras sensitivity out reaches the flash which doesn't hurt anything during the day but at night the flash can't light things bright enough at longer distance for a good picture. I've been using reconyx last few years and don't like the price but quality is real good and batteries last a long time. Used to have cuddebacks and wasn't terrible but wasn't great---have not tried cuddy for a few years.