Hankfan, I have been using game cameras for the last 4 yrs and I' ve never seen it effect a deer' s travel pattern. Not to say it hasn' t happened but I have night photo after photo of the same bucks in the same places. I personally don' t believe deer see the flash in the same way that a human would. If they did, there is no way they could hang around for another photo because the light intensity is blinding. I think there are two things with a camera that will scare a deer more than anything. 1) leaving human scent on the camera unit and around the area and 2) if the actual camera makes an audible noise while taking a photo.

I think alot of people are very very careless with their scent when putting out and checking their cameras. That is one reason that I don' t always like putting my cameras very close to where I hunt. The less scent, activity, etc in your hunting area the better. However, I don' t really think the camera itself is as much of a deer deterrant as our activity. So keep you activity to a minimum and you will probably be ok. About my 2nd point, I have heard some game camera units that are so loud when taking a photo, that a deer would no doubt hear it.

I build my own digital game cameras and I' ve had great luck. Let me add one thought to this discussion. There are tons of bucks that we will get photos of that we will never actually see while hunting. Many of them are wise and mostly nocturnal. If a game camera gives me an opportunity to see that deer, then it' s probably worth the risk of spooking him. I know that might sound silly but think about it. If I' m never going to see him hunting, I' d at least like to be able to have a photo of him. Just my thoughts. Good luck and share you photos with us when you get a chance!!

Oh, if you want to see some of my photos, go to my website. www.applebytexas.com