Any advice on a trail/wildlife camera for under $100 would be appreciated. There seem to be so many, it’s hard to know how to evaluate them all. Thanks,
Allen Brooks
Allen, is there a zero missing in the original post? Or perhaps I am not familiar with what a trail/wildlife camera is.
Hi Egidio, No typo. Many of these cameras are under $100; some between $100 and $300. I’m not all that familiar with the “guts” of these cameras, which is why I’m looking for input from those who have used them. Basically, they’re a camera that will photograph wildlife when a motion sensor is triggered. Now that you mention it, it does seem surprising that this technology is so inexpensive. Which brings up the quality of the images recorded and another reason I’m looking for input.
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Thanks for the clarification, Allen.
Hi Allen: I have 3 trail cameras that work, and one that isn’t worth a hoot!!!
My favorite is a SpyPoint camera that is several years old. I think the actual manufacturer’s name might be different, and that is the model name??? I’m not sure and don’t want to go outside to find out!!! I have 2 SpyPoint cameras, and I definitely prefer the older one. It has more options. I also have a Meidase camera that is pretty good.
I can offer some suggestions, especially since I will probably get another one in the next year.
Make absolutely sure that the camera will take a picture INSTANTLY. I have one cam that waits at least 15 seconds after the trigger to take a photo!! Are you kidding? What animal is still going to be there? No animals around here. Also, check on the number of pixels of each photo. Sometimes you get a couple size options, but make sure it’s big enough that you can actually recognize what is in the photo. I like to have the option to take a burst of 3 photos in a row. I caught some really cool photos of a cow moose and calves with that. They also have video options, but I like how the single shots have worked so far.
It’s nice if there are options to change how sensitive the camera is to movement. I have one camera that takes a photo if a single blade of grass moves. Seriously, I was ending up with thousands of photos every couple days. I ended up moving that camera to a place where it’s pointed just at a gravel area near our shop. I also have had cases where I was in the kitchen, watching a cow moose near the woods behind the house, in the sight line of that camera. It DID NOT take a photo of her, apparently because she was far enough away that it just didn’t trigger it. I had the sensitivity turned down to Medium at that time, and I turned it to High, but haven’t had that same situation occur to see if it would work.
I have not done enough research on how the various cameras see movement at night. That is something I will look at more closely before I buy another camera.
I know there are lots of cameras in the $125-$175 range. I’m going to look at lots of online reviews. It seemed to me that it was hard to find detailed specifications on line, and user comments can really give you insight into weird problems!!
I’ll let you know if I find out anything more… Good luck!
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