Bushnell Trophy Trail Cam HD

Though no a common brand. I can assure you that the Bushnell Trophy Trail Cam HD delivers. From its name, you have it. It is a HD cam with both video and still image capturing options. Another advantage, in fact a great one, is that it is actually water resistant, meaning that, to all camp lovers and explorers, this is the camera for you, one that you will not feel at risk if at all it dropped in some pool of water. It will actually worry you less. The battery are also reasonably lasting. Satisfactory image quality. This is a camera that gives value for your money.

The Bushnell Trail Cam HD Model: 119437c is a weatherproofed digital camera or video recorder, time or motion activated running on long life batteries, or can be mains fed. A infra-red night light captures any nocturnal movements and during daylight you have full HD colour with sound in video mode.

Brilliant. Several setting options allow you to capture the best of what is out there, multiframe, timed sequences or quick fire. With a SDHC card slot for upto 36Gb of wonderful and enchanting recordings of life you never knew about.

There are a number of options available, a tree screw or a 'bear proof case' and the camera is compatible with a python cable for that peace of mind.

All great and very positive.

A few downside niggles then. Bushnell is a tad geeky and does not want to bother telling us ordinary punters how to get the best out of this great piece of kit. The manual is sparse without explanation of what the lens and motion capture are capable of. Small things, ie birds, need to be real up close, 4ft, larger animals, ie deer, are fine at its optimum range of 12ft. At night time there is quite a glare from the infra-red light which can burnout details from the creature. Apart from a deer having a sniff or lick to camera, they seem aware of (human scent?) but undisturbed by the camera action, day or night.

Inside the case is an on/setting/off slide with very little positive position control. Plus, when going through the ok but not particularly helpful setting options, there is a one minute delay before the card reads and fires up on the small screen. Several times I have failed to fully select on, set up the camera, only to then discover a blue light warning me it is not properly on. So disassemble to re-engage slide. SD card and slide are only accessible from inside case.

Bushnell fail to mention that their camera is only compatible with the 8mm python not the more generally available 10mm model.

Mounting the camera, as I do, with a 'bear case' and python cable is a cumbersome process. Free end fed through case, then camera mount, then case and finally around tree, only to discover the camera is not pointing in right direction.

Get it all right and it is fantastic to discover all the wildlife, (and cats on the prowl) moving around in the early hours unseen by us.