Do you believe trail (scouting) cameras help or hurt your chances of harvesting a mature buck with a bow?? I would like to see your answers and reasoning why you think they improve or hurt your chances of harvesting a mature whitetail. In the mean time I will be writing up my opinion and reasoning, behind it. 
What are some of the Pluses or Minuses of putting out Trail (Scouting ) Cameras? When should they be used???
What are some of the Pluses or Minuses of putting out Trail (Scouting ) Cameras? When should they be used???
I do not the the camera hurts your chances. It walkig in to heck the camera that does. The more time you spend in the area the more changes that mature buck can bust you. If you could check the camera with out going in the woods that would be great. Just my $.02
I do not the the camera hurts your chances. It walkig in to heck the camera that does. The more time you spend in the area the more changes that mature buck can bust you. If you could check the camera with out going in the woods that would be great. Just my $.02
Lip,
I believe that cameras are an excellent tool to give you an “edge” but isn’t necessarily a sure fire guarantee that you’ll harvest an animal. For instance, my personal experience is that I can nail down my local deer and their pattern and set up a game plan. We all know that a mature buck during the rut will travel miles seeking does and more times than not they’re just passing through. How many bucks have you seen on camera at 2 in the morning but never see him again? I think a camera is a great tool to verify that deer are using a certain trail, food plot, funnel, ridge etc,etc. I think it’s more important to establish a key ambush point. I know for a fact that the majority of the mature bucks we’ve harvested have not been local deer but have come off neighboring property ,even miles away. To sum it up, in my opinion, I won’t hunt without em. It helps me decide which part of my property the deer are using and why. Whether it be food, cover, does,or whatever I know why they’re using a particular piece of property. Don’t get me wrong I know that there are times when a mature buck is “living” in his core area (especially early season)when you can get him on camera and get an idea of what his bedding area is, feeding area, and his favorite areas for finding Ms.Pretty. We know for a fact and have seen the photos of this bruiser from over 5 miles away and never saw him until opening morning! I should note that this is my dad’s buck,wouldn’t mind taking credit for it though!
Lip,
I believe that cameras are an excellent tool to give you an “edge” but isn’t necessarily a sure fire guarantee that you’ll harvest an animal. For instance, my personal experience is that I can nail down my local deer and their pattern and set up a game plan. We all know that a mature buck during the rut will travel miles seeking does and more times than not they’re just passing through. How many bucks have you seen on camera at 2 in the morning but never see him again? I think a camera is a great tool to verify that deer are using a certain trail, food plot, funnel, ridge etc,etc. I think it’s more important to establish a key ambush point. I know for a fact that the majority of the mature bucks we’ve harvested have not been local deer but have come off neighboring property ,even miles away. To sum it up, in my opinion, I won’t hunt without em. It helps me decide which part of my property the deer are using and why. Whether it be food, cover, does,or whatever I know why they’re using a particular piece of property. Don’t get me wrong I know that there are times when a mature buck is “living” in his core area (especially early season)when you can get him on camera and get an idea of what his bedding area is, feeding area, and his favorite areas for finding Ms.Pretty. We know for a fact and have seen the photos of this bruiser from over 5 miles away and never saw him until opening morning! I should note that this is my dad’s buck,wouldn’t mind taking credit for it though!
If its in a feeding area, I doubt it affects them much. If its near a bedding area or in a travel corridor, the flash can sometimes spook them enough to change patterns.
If you have a no-flash camera, I’d say there is little chance of educating them.
The disturbance from checking the camera is the biggest thing.
If its in a feeding area, I doubt it affects them much. If its near a bedding area or in a travel corridor, the flash can sometimes spook them enough to change patterns.
If you have a no-flash camera, I’d say there is little chance of educating them.
The disturbance from checking the camera is the biggest thing.
Good Stuff Guys, Keep it coming. 
I have my opinion on this topic that I will share soon, but just wanted to get others ideas on it.
In case you are wondering: It is a month away in ND and a month and half in MN. 
Good Stuff Guys, Keep it coming.
I have my opinion on this topic that I will share soon, but just wanted to get others ideas on it.
In case you are wondering: It is a month away in ND and a month and half in MN.
I agree with the previous posts. The most important thing anytime of year is to not push the deer out of their natural habits/ trails. A camera or series of cameras, will you give you an unbelieveable amount of knowledge, of travel times, routes and who/what is realy going through an area. The fact that you can have eyes there 24/7, is probably the biggest advancement in deer hunting, since the popularity of small food plots placed specifically to hold deer. I have yet to connect, with the big guy since using cameras, but admit, I probably am not taking full advantage of them the way I could/should. It is a learning experience I believe. I do agree, they can hurt you if used haphazardly and you let your guard down.
big g 
PS, Ripley archery hunt lottery deadline is mid August… 
I agree with the previous posts. The most important thing anytime of year is to not push the deer out of their natural habits/ trails. A camera or series of cameras, will you give you an unbelieveable amount of knowledge, of travel times, routes and who/what is realy going through an area. The fact that you can have eyes there 24/7, is probably the biggest advancement in deer hunting, since the popularity of small food plots placed specifically to hold deer. I have yet to connect, with the big guy since using cameras, but admit, I probably am not taking full advantage of them the way I could/should. It is a learning experience I believe. I do agree, they can hurt you if used haphazardly and you let your guard down.
big g
PS, Ripley archery hunt lottery deadline is mid August…
I definately believe cameras are a plus for finding and harvesting big bucks. If a nice 10 pt. stands in front of you and you have seen an even larger 10 pt. on your camera, well, now you have a decision. I also will be using the pictures this fall when I sell our 127 acres in Pepin county.
I definately believe cameras are a plus for finding and harvesting big bucks. If a nice 10 pt. stands in front of you and you have seen an even larger 10 pt. on your camera, well, now you have a decision. I also will be using the pictures this fall when I sell our 127 acres in Pepin county.
I feel that they will let you know if you have a good one in the area! But if you continue to disturb the area, he will leave!!! I would limit my use, once you know he is in the area, start hunting, if season is open!!!!
I feel that they will let you know if you have a good one in the area! But if you continue to disturb the area, he will leave!!! I would limit my use, once you know he is in the area, start hunting, if season is open!!!!
I agree with the guys here. It is one tool among many to use to improve your chances. I will say I do look for other things besides big bucks. When I retreive my card I am looking for does too, especially in October. Another plus for a camera is the time/date stamp. I go back and look at what time they are moving and go as far as figuring out the weather for the time that they were photographed. It is a great tool, but not everyone that runs out and buys one is going to get a bruiser. It is also cool to see all the other wildlife in your area. Great post Lip
I agree with the guys here. It is one tool among many to use to improve your chances. I will say I do look for other things besides big bucks. When I retreive my card I am looking for does too, especially in October. Another plus for a camera is the time/date stamp. I go back and look at what time they are moving and go as far as figuring out the weather for the time that they were photographed. It is a great tool, but not everyone that runs out and buys one is going to get a bruiser. It is also cool to see all the other wildlife in your area. Great post Lip
I think that if you are a person that uses trail cameras that they might give you a little edge. If I saw a trophy buck photo every other day or so taken at the same location that was taken inside of a couple hour window and said window was during legal shooting hours then I’d be tempted to set up in the area and make certain that I was sitting in my stand ready to intercept the buck. However I have noticed through many years of bow hunting that deer are not exactly predictable and although they may cruise through the same general area every 2nd or 3rd day they don’t always use the same trail or come from the same direction. Plus once the pre-rut and rut get into full swing bucks don’t live by the rules and can travel several miles every day searching for Mrs. Right.
One of my good friends has a few trail cameras and he gets some fantastic photos of those huge Iowa Bucks. He admits that the cameras really haven’t put any more venison in his freezer than when he hunted withuot the cams. He has taken some really nice bucks each of the past few years none of which were caught on film. 2 years ago he took a massive deer with an extra main beam that was known to reside in the area but never showed up on any of his photos. He did tell me that by checking his trail cams every couple of days that the deer caught onto his being there and fewer deer showed up to have their photos taken. When he moves the cameras to new locations the deer show up again. It might be a good practice to wear scent free rubber boots and gloves when checking your trail cams.
I don’t believe trail cams are as bogus as some of the equipment marketed towards us like Scent Blocker Clothing. I guess if having the cameras up gives you a dose of confidence then go with it.
I think that if you are a person that uses trail cameras that they might give you a little edge. If I saw a trophy buck photo every other day or so taken at the same location that was taken inside of a couple hour window and said window was during legal shooting hours then I’d be tempted to set up in the area and make certain that I was sitting in my stand ready to intercept the buck. However I have noticed through many years of bow hunting that deer are not exactly predictable and although they may cruise through the same general area every 2nd or 3rd day they don’t always use the same trail or come from the same direction. Plus once the pre-rut and rut get into full swing bucks don’t live by the rules and can travel several miles every day searching for Mrs. Right.
One of my good friends has a few trail cameras and he gets some fantastic photos of those huge Iowa Bucks. He admits that the cameras really haven’t put any more venison in his freezer than when he hunted withuot the cams. He has taken some really nice bucks each of the past few years none of which were caught on film. 2 years ago he took a massive deer with an extra main beam that was known to reside in the area but never showed up on any of his photos. He did tell me that by checking his trail cams every couple of days that the deer caught onto his being there and fewer deer showed up to have their photos taken. When he moves the cameras to new locations the deer show up again. It might be a good practice to wear scent free rubber boots and gloves when checking your trail cams.
I don’t believe trail cams are as bogus as some of the equipment marketed towards us like Scent Blocker Clothing. I guess if having the cameras up gives you a dose of confidence then go with it.
I think it will help as long as you follow some guidelines
1- big bucks don’t like humans, i don’t care if your in the city, country, deer farm or a fence ranch. for that reason when and if I go in the woods that I hunt anytime of year I like to go just as I was hunting — SCENT FREE–
2- I like to use the cameras on trails that won’t be used in the fall.. as their food sources change so will their traveling patterns so you have to keep that in mind.
3- knowing what you have on your property is always encouraging. I had 2 big boys last year that no one ever saw until after season. they were at the camera everynight between 3 and 5am……your gonna see deer that you never knew where there too.
I think it will help as long as you follow some guidelines
1- big bucks don’t like humans, i don’t care if your in the city, country, deer farm or a fence ranch. for that reason when and if I go in the woods that I hunt anytime of year I like to go just as I was hunting — SCENT FREE–
2- I like to use the cameras on trails that won’t be used in the fall.. as their food sources change so will their traveling patterns so you have to keep that in mind.
3- knowing what you have on your property is always encouraging. I had 2 big boys last year that no one ever saw until after season. they were at the camera everynight between 3 and 5am……your gonna see deer that you never knew where there too.
Quote:
Lip,
I believe that cameras are an excellent tool to give you an “edge” but isn’t necessarily a sure fire guarantee that you’ll harvest an animal. For instance, my personal experience is that I can nail down my local deer and their pattern and set up a game plan. We all know that a mature buck during the rut will travel miles seeking does and more times than not they’re just passing through. How many bucks have you seen on camera at 2 in the morning but never see him again? I think a camera is a great tool to verify that deer are using a certain trail, food plot, funnel, ridge etc,etc. I think it’s more important to establish a key ambush point. I know for a fact that the majority of the mature bucks we’ve harvested have not been local deer but have come off neighboring property ,even miles away. To sum it up, in my opinion, I won’t hunt without em. It helps me decide which part of my property the deer are using and why. Whether it be food, cover, does,or whatever I know why they’re using a particular piece of property. Don’t get me wrong I know that there are times when a mature buck is “living” in his core area (especially early season)when you can get him on camera and get an idea of what his bedding area is, feeding area, and his favorite areas for finding Ms.Pretty. We know for a fact and have seen the photos of this bruiser from over 5 miles away and never saw him until opening morning!
He hit it right on the money I also take into consideration the length of time i leave the camera out in the woods because that means the more time i will be out there checking the card, which means leaving scent in the area. I won’t be leaving the camera out in the woods in about 3 weeks because that will give the deer a chance to calm down if they were even slightly spooked. I think the flash has a lot to do with the spooking of the deer because obviously, the deer can see it 
Ive always thought that once you know there is a “shooter” in the woods, that you should let the area be, meaning no cameras and no nothin. You know he’s there and you know that he uses the same trail periodically. So why keep the camera there?
Good topic Lip
Quote:
Lip,
I believe that cameras are an excellent tool to give you an “edge” but isn’t necessarily a sure fire guarantee that you’ll harvest an animal. For instance, my personal experience is that I can nail down my local deer and their pattern and set up a game plan. We all know that a mature buck during the rut will travel miles seeking does and more times than not they’re just passing through. How many bucks have you seen on camera at 2 in the morning but never see him again? I think a camera is a great tool to verify that deer are using a certain trail, food plot, funnel, ridge etc,etc. I think it’s more important to establish a key ambush point. I know for a fact that the majority of the mature bucks we’ve harvested have not been local deer but have come off neighboring property ,even miles away. To sum it up, in my opinion, I won’t hunt without em. It helps me decide which part of my property the deer are using and why. Whether it be food, cover, does,or whatever I know why they’re using a particular piece of property. Don’t get me wrong I know that there are times when a mature buck is “living” in his core area (especially early season)when you can get him on camera and get an idea of what his bedding area is, feeding area, and his favorite areas for finding Ms.Pretty. We know for a fact and have seen the photos of this bruiser from over 5 miles away and never saw him until opening morning!
He hit it right on the money I also take into consideration the length of time i leave the camera out in the woods because that means the more time i will be out there checking the card, which means leaving scent in the area. I won’t be leaving the camera out in the woods in about 3 weeks because that will give the deer a chance to calm down if they were even slightly spooked. I think the flash has a lot to do with the spooking of the deer because obviously, the deer can see it
Ive always thought that once you know there is a “shooter” in the woods, that you should let the area be, meaning no cameras and no nothin. You know he’s there and you know that he uses the same trail periodically. So why keep the camera there?
Good topic Lip
Rip, i know im going to enjoy the one i just bought. I can see alot of uses in tracking whats been through your general stand locations. Since i’ve bought mine i’ve found myself thinking about the rare to semi rare sightings of the big ones i’ve seen, 160″ and above and I know if I would have had one in the past i would have seen a couple real nice ones by trailcam befor i visually sighted them.
Example, i had been ratteling from my stand for about three days with my 140″ racks knowing there had to be a big buck around, things just looked too good for there not to be. I was walking to my stand early one morning and seen this 190″ 75 yrds from my stand with the prettiest doe i’ve ever seen. Ya he seen me because i didn’t expect him to be there that late in the morning, just goes to show ya that don’t overwalk an area and make too much scent to keep them from your area, do that earlier in the pre season time and always always wear scented boots. I know if i would have had my cam up i would have gotten a picture of him because this was a deer yard where most of the deer met in early evening and early morning hours coming off of and going to bed. I found out later that he bedded down on the neighboring farm and the area i was hunting was full of does so i know i would have seen him because of the ratteling i had been doing.
Norm the guy who owned the farm told me that he knew of that one but there was one even bigger then that one, enough to make a guys heart skip a beat and maybe i would have also gotten a picture of him. I know theres alot of times you can’t comsistently pattern deer and only get an idea of whats up but if you get pictures and times that will help narrow it down, especially if theres alot of does around. I will still go too and from my stand during dark or as close as i can get too that because thats the best time to travel to and from the stand.
The closer it gets too season and still seeing a nice buck on a regular basis means hes close by, maybe within ratteling distance while your in stand. I for one believe you can read a buck by what he looks like some of the time, weather hes really sharp or haphazard so that helps. I think every buck makes mistakes its just some more then others and i try to read them and with a trail cam telling me which way hes moving and what time that will help me.
I haven’t gotten mine out in the field yet but when i do im checking mine about once a week, i bought one with an external 12 volt power cord too hook to a deep cycle just so i can fill the chip with the deer undisturbed. I purposely bougth a 512 mb chip and my camera will take 352 high resolution pictures with that chip so i plan on leaving the deer to themselves so i don’t upset anything, especially the closer it gets to bow season.
I know it will let me know how many bucks are visiting my stand area in the early morning, late evening hours and which ones are going through in the middle of the night. Whats more important is which ones are repeatedly making a visit and at what times and these deer are probably close deer and your in thier stomping grounds. The ones you see in the middle of the night are probably from other areas but i’ll see if thier making more frequent visits and at what time.
Ratteling bucks brings them in and also turns them away if they don’t want to fight with any other bucks, with seeing the diffrent bucks that are in the area i can hopefuly narrow it down on which technique is best and at what time. Im really going to pay attention to what does are around and what time, older or younger does and correlate that to what times those bigger bucks go through and what does thier following.
Rip, i know im going to enjoy the one i just bought. I can see alot of uses in tracking whats been through your general stand locations. Since i’ve bought mine i’ve found myself thinking about the rare to semi rare sightings of the big ones i’ve seen, 160″ and above and I know if I would have had one in the past i would have seen a couple real nice ones by trailcam befor i visually sighted them.
Example, i had been ratteling from my stand for about three days with my 140″ racks knowing there had to be a big buck around, things just looked too good for there not to be. I was walking to my stand early one morning and seen this 190″ 75 yrds from my stand with the prettiest doe i’ve ever seen. Ya he seen me because i didn’t expect him to be there that late in the morning, just goes to show ya that don’t overwalk an area and make too much scent to keep them from your area, do that earlier in the pre season time and always always wear scented boots. I know if i would have had my cam up i would have gotten a picture of him because this was a deer yard where most of the deer met in early evening and early morning hours coming off of and going to bed. I found out later that he bedded down on the neighboring farm and the area i was hunting was full of does so i know i would have seen him because of the ratteling i had been doing.
Norm the guy who owned the farm told me that he knew of that one but there was one even bigger then that one, enough to make a guys heart skip a beat and maybe i would have also gotten a picture of him. I know theres alot of times you can’t comsistently pattern deer and only get an idea of whats up but if you get pictures and times that will help narrow it down, especially if theres alot of does around. I will still go too and from my stand during dark or as close as i can get too that because thats the best time to travel to and from the stand.
The closer it gets too season and still seeing a nice buck on a regular basis means hes close by, maybe within ratteling distance while your in stand. I for one believe you can read a buck by what he looks like some of the time, weather hes really sharp or haphazard so that helps. I think every buck makes mistakes its just some more then others and i try to read them and with a trail cam telling me which way hes moving and what time that will help me.
I haven’t gotten mine out in the field yet but when i do im checking mine about once a week, i bought one with an external 12 volt power cord too hook to a deep cycle just so i can fill the chip with the deer undisturbed. I purposely bougth a 512 mb chip and my camera will take 352 high resolution pictures with that chip so i plan on leaving the deer to themselves so i don’t upset anything, especially the closer it gets to bow season.
I know it will let me know how many bucks are visiting my stand area in the early morning, late evening hours and which ones are going through in the middle of the night. Whats more important is which ones are repeatedly making a visit and at what times and these deer are probably close deer and your in thier stomping grounds. The ones you see in the middle of the night are probably from other areas but i’ll see if thier making more frequent visits and at what time.
Ratteling bucks brings them in and also turns them away if they don’t want to fight with any other bucks, with seeing the diffrent bucks that are in the area i can hopefuly narrow it down on which technique is best and at what time. Im really going to pay attention to what does are around and what time, older or younger does and correlate that to what times those bigger bucks go through and what does thier following.
Rob, Most everything was covered in members replies. I use them and can just about guarantee that that have helped me in two instances. First, not all property holds quality bucks but on the same token at some time one has to pass through. When I get a pic of a “shooter” it helps me mentally in the sense that I go from stealthy to ultra stealthy in all aspects from trying to be even more scent-free to changing my route in, allowing alot of extra time from the time I get there to prime time, never hunt a particular stand when the wind is not pefect, etc, etc. It’s a now I know sorta thing as I know he was here once and if I hunt this area with smarts there’s always a chance I may run into him versus sitting in your stand going on weeks and months and never seeing shooter and finally saying to yourself, there are no big bucks out here. I’d sit there as long as it takes just to get a glimpse of w-out a shot. Cameras also make my mind up for me which property I’m going to hunt early season, pre and post rut. For me my cameras are to let me know a shooter is currently around, if you hunt areas with more numbers of “shooters” then it comes down to where are they now and what are they doing? So Camera placement is more crucial as you want to know when one of the mulitple big guys is using a certain area. I can tell you this, pics of big bucks give me ALMOST the same feeling of “thunder in my chest” as actually harvesting one and It will change the way you hunt and give you the mental edge if you are a big buck or go home type which I know you are. Most all clothing, stands, cameras, bows and all equipment made today is to help you get a one up on mr. big. If a deerhunter uses his best common sense and years of experience knowledge these will work to your advantage, Now it’s all up to us to pull it off with no gliches.
Rob, Most everything was covered in members replies. I use them and can just about guarantee that that have helped me in two instances. First, not all property holds quality bucks but on the same token at some time one has to pass through. When I get a pic of a “shooter” it helps me mentally in the sense that I go from stealthy to ultra stealthy in all aspects from trying to be even more scent-free to changing my route in, allowing alot of extra time from the time I get there to prime time, never hunt a particular stand when the wind is not pefect, etc, etc. It’s a now I know sorta thing as I know he was here once and if I hunt this area with smarts there’s always a chance I may run into him versus sitting in your stand going on weeks and months and never seeing shooter and finally saying to yourself, there are no big bucks out here. I’d sit there as long as it takes just to get a glimpse of w-out a shot. Cameras also make my mind up for me which property I’m going to hunt early season, pre and post rut. For me my cameras are to let me know a shooter is currently around, if you hunt areas with more numbers of “shooters” then it comes down to where are they now and what are they doing? So Camera placement is more crucial as you want to know when one of the mulitple big guys is using a certain area. I can tell you this, pics of big bucks give me ALMOST the same feeling of “thunder in my chest” as actually harvesting one and It will change the way you hunt and give you the mental edge if you are a big buck or go home type which I know you are. Most all clothing, stands, cameras, bows and all equipment made today is to help you get a one up on mr. big. If a deerhunter uses his best common sense and years of experience knowledge these will work to your advantage, Now it’s all up to us to pull it off with no gliches.
For the most part, you have to put your time in hunting a big buck. Having pictures of that buck in my “area” gives me confidence to put in more time than I would hunting blind. With that said, I believe my trail cameras help me out A LOT…..Confidence
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
