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2009 Trail Camera Shootout
By: The TrailCamPro Staff
What The Shootout Tells Us
The 2009 Trail Camera Shootout was designed to test which game cameras do a better job of capturing photos in the field. Let's take a look at some of the attributes that allowed some hunting cameras to perform better than others.
Detection width - Game Cameras with a wide detection zone were able to sense the test subject and start the trigger process more quickly than others. Out in the field this not only allows the camera to take quicker pictures, but also enables models with wide detection zones to capture photos of animals that never wander into the center of the picture. Deer browsing on the edges of food plots are a great example. Models from Reconyx, Bushnell, Spypoint, Leaf River, Stealth and Scoutguard all have wider detection zones than their competitors.
Detection Range - Models that were able to sense the test subject out past 50' picked up points their competitors missed out on. In the field, a camera trap with a long detection range can effectively double the area it covers. Models from Reconyx and Spypoint were able to detect motion out past their competitors.
Trigger speed - Finally, Trail Cameras which were able to capture a picture quickly scored well across the board. Interestingly enough, some cameras with incredibly fast trigger times were incapable of scoring better than a 4 or a 5. This is because some cameras with fast trigger times are handicapped by very narrow detection zones. Even though many of these models snap a picture almost instantaneously, they can't take that picture until the subject is in the middle of the photo.
For a better understanding of the relationship between a camera's trigger speed and detection zone please view our Detection Zone Test
How the Shootout Works
We lined up a fair representation of every brand of scouting camera available at the time of the shootout. Game Camera models within a manufacturer's line that display the same performance characteristics were not duplicated. For example, we tested a Reconyx RM45, but left out the Reconyx RC55, RC60 and RC60 HO because they all have essentially the same detection circuitry. The same can be said about other brands unless noted in the test. With each unit mounted to a board, we walked across the row of trail cameras at 10' intervals from 10' out to 80'. Each camera was then awarded a score (1-8) at each distance based on how quickly it was able to capture a photo of the test subject. Below, please find the scores for each camera at each distance. Aggregate scores are posted at the far right.
Please note: 2009 Shootout was done on a warm day which decreased the cameras sensitivity. This resulted in lower then normal scores.
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