If you are passionate about wildlife monitoring or hunting activities, then "how to place a hunting camera for better results" is the knowledge you must have. As the seasons go by, the areas where the wild animals move, the food sources, and other locations change, so the placement of the tracking camera has to change a bit over time as well. Proper placement of tracking cameras helps to better document the habits and movements of wildlife, helping observers and hunters to better understand wildlife.
How to Choose Where to Install a Trail Camera
Monitoring the Target's Activity Area
Before we choose the location of the hunting camera, we should first understand the activity area and activity habits of the target through the information, which can help us choose a better location.
- Deer is a typical herbivore, usually living in the forest, or living in the tundra and scrubland with grass, bark, shoots, and young saplings.
- Wild lions are social animals, usually in groups, and prefer to inhabit areas such as grasslands, sparser dry forests, and scrub.
Choosing Popular Areas
If you want to photograph wildlife with a higher degree of accuracy, you can choose areas where the animals are frequently active, such as their food sources, activity crossings, and suitable resting places.
- Fawns are generally dominated by young leaves, grasses, shrubs, and other low-growing plants, and will frequent places such as forests, brushy areas, and lakes.
- Skunks are omnivores with a wide range of food sources and will generally be found in areas such as fields, woodlands, shrublands, and burrows.
Finding Water Areas
Water sources are an important factor in the survival of wildlife in the outdoors, and placing hunting cameras on paths leading to water areas or mounting them on rivers, lakes, and vegetation around water sources will increase the likelihood of photographing wildlife.
Details to Keep in Mind When Placing Your Trail Camera
Time of Day and Season
When we are placing a trail camera, we should consider the time of day and season of wildlife activity, as the active areas of wildlife vary over time.
Height and Angle
When choosing where to install the hunting camera, the height and angle of the installation should also be adjusted according to the size and height of the wildlife, which will help to capture the movement of the target animals and better understand their habits.
Avoid Direct Sunlight
To avoid shooting images with glare, which affects the quality of pictures and videos, direct sunlight needs to be avoided. It is generally recommended to point the hunting camera shooting angle to the north or south to ensure that the camera can capture clear and sharp images.
Multiple Tests
When finalizing the placement of the hunting camera, we should make sure that the camera can capture the area where the wildlife is moving by testing different angles several times to observe the images captured by the camera.
Clearing Obstacles
When the camera is installed outdoors, it is important to remove any weeds, branches, and other obstacles in the vicinity to reduce the frequency of false triggers.
Environmental Factors
Since outdoor environments are complex and can be a hindrance to camera operation, temperature fluctuations and potential weather changes in the environment should be taken into account when installing a hunting camera to enable it to work properly and consistently in the outdoors.
Regular Inspection and Maintenance
When a camera is installed and used outdoors, you need to go over the camera's operational status regularly, cleaning the camera's screen and lenses, checking the remaining storage space, and replacing the batteries, among other things. Make sure the camera can continue to operate normally outdoors.
Proper Installation
To ensure that the camera is mounted firmly and stably outdoors, you need to choose a reliable mounting bracket, mounting strap tree stand, etc., to prevent the camera from tilting due to extreme weather, which will affect normal operation.