doughboysigep

just got some pics off my new Bushnell 2.1mp cam. people wonder if flash spooks deer. I would have to say no - the cam took 34 pics at nite over 2+ hours. So the deer weren't spooked, they just stayed, came back moved around etc. I don't think flash is a big concern after seeing that.

robdre56

i got a moultrie 200 3.1 and the flash doesent bother em they actually got closer to see what it was

robdre56

another

GrumpyTom

Sorry but I have to disagree with this above statement. It is totally misleading.

Will the white flash spook all deer, NO it will not ......... will any deer be spooked by the white flash YES there will be.

This statement is very hard to prove as well. Yes you got pictures of deer, but how many deer saw the flash and avoided that area, you will never know without having many IR cams set up near buy. Deer can also become familuar with the flash over time so they will not get spooked (they learn that it is not a danger) but that does not really work well for a scoutting cam.

The thing I can tell you is that over on the homebrew trailcam site, more and more builders are going to IR cameras becasue they have found that they will get more pictures of larger bucks. plus more pictures in general.

A little test I did with my homebrew was set it up for 3 weeks (checked weekly) as an IR cam (with the IR medium on the camera filtering out the white flash) and I got on average 20-30 pics a week on a trail. Every set of pictures showed more then one picture of the same deer. When I removed the IR medium to convert the camera back to white flash, I got 1 picture in one week and the buck was starting to flee. Never had another picture after that one (on second day). Converted the camerra back and it took over two weeks for the deer to start back on the semi regular pattern they had (time of day they used that trail). I underrstand that this test is not perfect, there are many variables which could have casude the deer to alter their pattern, but it is just too much of a coinicidence for me to say that deer are not effected by a white flash game cam.

Again:

Will the white flash spook all deer, NO it will not ......... will any deer be spooked by the white flash YES there will be.

SHED HUNTER 365

From my experience I have pictures of deer that have actually run from the flash. But not very many. The majority of deer I believe are either curious, cautoious or get used to it.

buckmaster_27

does it spook deer.im sure it does some and not others.i think it makes big bucks weary...i get very few big buck pics even when i know there in the area or if i see them hunting in a certain area.they seem to get leary after the camera goes off if you leave it in the same spot for to long.so yes it spooks some deer and not others.especially during hunting season.winter and spring im not sure about.well thats my feeling about it.

bloodcrick

funny this post came up. I seen something this morning April 24 that changed my thinking on this. I have been watching a 130" buck that has not yet shed his antlers yet by my house. He has been entering the woods in the same spot, so i set up a cam yesterday and just after daylight today he was headed toward it from the left side, spotted the cam and locked up for 20 minutes. finnaly he walked away from it and stared at it again for 10 minutes just out of trigger range, keep in mind i was watching this from a spotting scope from upstairs. He finnaly decided to get closer and as he was walking by, it flashed. He bolted away and stopped to stare for a bit and then walked around it before entering the woods. unlucky for me it was a slow wildview and all i got was his behind as he walked by. given light enough to see the cam but dark enough to flash, it scares em!!

GrumpyTom

bloodcreek your story is in lines with alot of others I have heard from other memberrs on another site. More and more are converting their cams to an IR camera. Some have even converted the moultrie into an IR as well as their home brews.

It is not just the white flash that will spook a deer, some cameras are just plain noisey, some will flash an LED light when triggering. With some deer, any of the above will spook them, with others, it might attract their attention and curiosity enough for them to investigate and walk right up to the camera. Deer are deer and you can never predict exactly how they will behave.

My take on white flash / Ir flash is that it wil depend on what you want your camera for. If you want it for scoutting, then you would be better off with an IR as it will spook less deer by being less intrusive in the area. If you want just plain good pictures, and on a feeder or high traffic are where they can become famiular with the camera, then white flash will probually not be a bad choice for you. Each camera will have it's place in different situations.

doughboysigep

I can't disagree with the above statements and observations. I was just trying to point out that these particular deer (may be the same or could be some different groups) were obviously not bothered by the flash. I have very few pics where it appears that deer have been spooked. I am sure that some deer do spook, but to what extent and degree they are affected is definitely hard to say.

zmschillin

I dont know if it is true or not but I heard, If you place your camera up highand point it down (so the flash is coming from above the deer)the flash will not scare the deer as much,when you do thisit is simillar to a lightning bolt. But when a camera is low and the deer see the flash they think it is coming right at them and they will spook. To me this sounds like it might be true.