Trail cam recommendations

JonathanRyan

JonathanRyan

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(I've had a look but the last thread like this was about 2 years ago and things move fast.)

What trail cams do people use and recommend / would recommend for these use cases....
  1. We have something living under our shed. It's probably a fox's lay up but it could be a badger. I'd like to set a camera trap with excellent dusk ability to capture stills / video of whatever's under there.
  2. We have a pair of very friendly crows and get inundated with starlings and goldfinches. They are always doing cute stuff in the water bowls we put out. I'd like some nice stills.
  3. We like bees and work with the Bumble Bee Conservation Trust. It would be nice to put a camera on whatever flowers are currently getting hit (last week it was borage, this week they have moved on) so we can see what type of bees are visiting. So it either needs to run continuously or be triggered by small insects. It will need pretty good resolution.
Internet says Browning are currently king of the hill. Can I get better or cheaper than £185 for a Recon Force Elite HP5?
 
GreenNinja67 said:
You don't need to spend anywhere near that.

www.gardenersworld.com

The best wildlife and trail cameras for your garden in 2025

See your garden visitors in their natural habitat with our pick of wildlife cameras.
www.gardenersworld.com
Click to expand...
Thanks - some interesting points in that article and well worth reading.

However, I notice that all the cameras they mention are from "unknown" brands and they don't seem to have tried any of them.

I'd certainly rather spend less if I can - but don't want to buy something cheap that doesn't work.
 
JonathanRyan said:
Thanks - some interesting points in that article and well worth reading.

However, I notice that all the cameras they mention are from "unknown" brands and they don't seem to have tried any of them.

I'd certainly rather spend less if I can - but don't want to buy something cheap that doesn't work.
Click to expand...

If you haven't already, check out Naturespy - very knowledgeable and very helpful.
 
I have an "unknown" Chinese 1080p trail cam and it's pretty good.

The 4k ones are even better. Search YouTube for reviews if you see one you like the look of.
 
GeordieStew said:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgDcNF4OeWM
Mike Lane reviewed this one. It's spendy though.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09Y8V268F I have this one and it's fine. Ok. I'd like a better one.
Click to expand...
Thanks - looks interesting and Sony sensors are usually very good. Spendy though....

gramps said:
If you haven't already, check out Naturespy - very knowledgeable and very helpful.
Click to expand...
Thank you - yes, great site. They are steering me towards Browning. Their own brand look good but the wifi range may be an issue.
 
Handy thread as just been looking at these again, after asking on a FB group Im part of I got some opinions but mainly from one person in particular that uses these quite a bit for wildlife as that's her thing. She's been using a Crenova that's nearly 10 years old now and still going strong. I note the make is the first one in the gardeners world article so between her recommendation, the GW recommendation and they are on offer on amazon with an extra 5% voucher I've pulled the trigger at £75 and some loose pennies!
 
Thread revival time as I'm looking for a very cheap trail camera to check if it's a hedgehog I have in my garden.
There are a few on amazon at about £20-£25, has anyone tried one, and if so what did your get and is it OK?
Want to sell it?
I can't see me using one for more than a few days, just don't want to keep putting hedgehog food out if it's not one!
 
Maybe a sand "trap" to get some footprints?

www.naturenurturesussex.com

Footprint Traps — Nature Nurture Sussex

By Mel Evans and Kevin Fuller A great way to discover what animals are in an area is to look at the footprints they leave behind. However, this can be easier at some times of the year than others. One of the magical things about a snowy day in the woods is just how easy it is to track animals. T
www.naturenurturesussex.com www.naturenurturesussex.com
 
I very recently got a new trail camera, the time had come to replace the 2 I had, one disappeared a couple of months ago and the other died a while ago.

I did my research, watched a ton of reviews and for me, the Zeiss Secacams stood out. I got the Secacam 3, with the rechargeable battery pack. You can use AA batteries or the dedicated pack and this appealed to me as one of the problems I had with my previous cameras was that they would keep working when the batteries got low but wouldn't record footage.

The Secacam will send notifications of triggers to your phone via an app and you can view the footage from your phone, even if your camera is miles away, this appealed to me as my cameras are often left out for long periods. There is a subscription for this but it's less than the cost of a Costa per month for the lowest one, which for now, gives me all I need. Being cellular, you can also locate the camera anywhere, if it were stolen and switched on.

Image and video quality seem to be very good although I haven't really pushed it yet. I would expect image quality from any trail cam though not to be as good as a DSLR or mirrorless. The Secacams are very keenly priced, I think mine all in was £189, including £60 for the optional, rechargeable battery pack.

That's my recent experience, and I'm sure the mentioned ones above are all very good too, I've heard the Brownings are excellent as well.
 
Nod said:
Maybe a sand "trap" to get some footprints?

www.naturenurturesussex.com

Footprint Traps — Nature Nurture Sussex

By Mel Evans and Kevin Fuller A great way to discover what animals are in an area is to look at the footprints they leave behind. However, this can be easier at some times of the year than others. One of the magical things about a snowy day in the woods is just how easy it is to track animals. T
www.naturenurturesussex.com www.naturenurturesussex.com
Click to expand...
That's a good idea, and even cheaper than the £20 ones..!
@dale, I'm sure yours is excellent but my needs are so very basic..
 
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