Trail Cameras: To Catch a Deer and A Thief

I recently purchased a trail camera for my father for the upcoming deer hunting season. After doing much research, I decided to go with the Moultrie i40, an affordable trail camera that delivers excellent results and has great feedback all across the internet by purchasers. A newer version is now available, the i60, but you'll pay a hundred bucks more. After giving it a little thought, I wondered why I'm not hearing more about these cameras being used as security devices in addition to cameras for tracking deer?

It's my opinion that if these cameras are safely hidden or made secure by protective coverings, every homeowner should have one. To only be a 4.0 megapixel camera, the Moultrie i40 delivers extraordinary images. I would argue that there isn't much difference in the Moultrie cam as there is in my 8.1 megapixel still shot camera when it comes to picture quality.

Recently, an old pre-Civil War era mansion was burned in Bloomfield (KY). Before the fire, the home had been the source of tremendous theft and over the years hundreds of antiques had been stolen that were left behind locked doors when the owners moved to another residence close by. Wouldn't it have been wonderful to have a few trail cameras hidden in the shadows of the large house? I can imagine it would have made a tremendous difference and many of the burglars would have been caught.

My only complaint would be the fragility of the shell design of the Moultrie. More expensive trail cameras are more sturdy in their build. But you can't beat the low cost of the i40 Moultrie and the reliability is excellent. But I can't say the same for the plastic casing that houses the camera. Drop the camera a foot to the ground and it could be destroyed quite easily. My suggestion would be to go the extra mile and purchasing protective casing for the camera. Also, the i40 is not camouflaged.

I had a friend paint a camouflage design over the entire body of my Moultrie. You'll want a camouflage camera, especially if the camera is strapped to a tree in the woods, to greatly help prevent thieves stealing the actual camera. Some hunters like to check their camera once a week for images. I would recommend every couple days if you are able to...just for the sake of making sure it isn't stolen.

Also, if you are a deer hunter, make a small tag and tape it to the bottom of the camera where it can only be read if a trespasser is standing close to the camera and is considering stealing or damaging it. Don't be afraid to pose an exaggerated threat: say something to the nature of that by the time they have read the note, the camera has taken and sent photos via GPS satellite to a computer where they will be downloaded and reviewed, so destroying or stealing the device is not a good idea as they are already busted.

May sound hilarious, and it won't work every time, but believe me, I have seen it work and it's better to pose a threat as opposed to the trespasser running off with your $200 camera.