I love checking my trail cameras. You never know what you’ll see. Checking the files on an SD card feels a little bit like opening a present every time — even if it means I’m only looking at squirrels, raccoons or my dog. It’s a ritual that my whole family loves, especially my daughter. I’ve learned to only check my trail cameras about once a week because a watched trail camera is kind of like waiting for water to boil: nothing will happen until you forget about it for a while.

I’ve been using the Bushnell Aggressor No-Glow HD Trail Camera near my tree stand. I like it because it captures high definition video and sound, but is low key enough that the animals don’t seem to notice it. Picture quality – especially at night – is essential for scouting deer and planning hunting strategies. So many different models offer a variety of megapixel (MP) options. It’s important to remember that the higher the MP, the higher quality the photo. My Bushnell trail camera has a 14.0 MP, which provides a larger image – and more detail – than one with 10.0 MP.

This trail camera also has a super fast trigger speed (0.2 seconds) and excellent nighttime photo – and video – range. Check out how clear this image is at night:

I currently have my trail camera set on video, using the 10 second increment. There are several increments you can set it up on, all the way to 60 seconds, if that’s what you want. So far, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to see several deer under my tree stand weekly. But these deer seem to show up either on days I’m too busy to get out there or after I’ve gone in. I caught one small doe (definitely wouldn’t consider shooting it) literally under my stand 30 minutes after I’d climbed down. While this may not be my lucky season, like I’ve said before, just knowing that there are several deer out there is almost enough. Almost.

Do you check your trail cameras a lot during the season? How’s your season going?

New to bowhunting? Check out my “Beginner’s Guide to Archery: For Women” DVD available  HERE.