Trail Cam Strategy: Where, When, and How

Trail cameras are the single best scouting tool a whitetail hunter can own. But a camera in the wrong spot — or checked too often — does more harm than good. Here's how to get the most intel with the least intrusion.

Height and Angle Matter

The standard advice is to mount your camera 3 to 4 feet off the ground, angled slightly downward. That works for food plots and open areas. But on trails and funnels where deer pass within a few feet of the camera, that height puts the unit right in their face — and mature bucks will notice.

For tighter setups, mount the camera 6 to 8 feet high and angle it down toward the trail. This keeps it out of a deer's direct line of sight and reduces the chance of a buck catching the infrared flash or hearing the trigger. A ratchet strap and a small wedge or stick behind the camera gets the angle right.

Face North or South

This is one of the most overlooked tips. A camera facing east catches direct morning sun. A camera facing west gets blasted by evening sun. Both result in washed-out images, false triggers from sun glare, and batteries drained by thousands of blank photos.

Mount your cameras facing north or south whenever possible. You'll get cleaner images and far fewer false triggers.

Placement Strategy by Season

Spring and Summer (April - August): Focus on food sources. Place cameras on field edges where deer enter to feed in the evening — mineral sites, food plots, and the corners of ag fields where trails converge. This is your inventory period. You're cataloging what bucks are in the area and watching antler development.

Early Fall (September - October): Shift cameras to transition corridors — the routes deer use between bedding and feeding areas. Inside corners of timber, saddles in ridgelines, and creek crossings are money spots. Hang cameras at trail intersections where multiple paths converge.

Rut (November): Move cameras to scrapes and licking branches. Bucks will work scrape lines relentlessly during pre-rut and peak rut. A camera on a community scrape in a funnel or pinch point can capture every mature buck in the area within a two-week window.

Late Season (December - January): Food is king again. Put cameras back on food sources — standing corn, beans, or winter food plots. Deer are burning calories to survive and will pattern heavily to the best available food.

Trail Intersections: The Best Single Location

If you can only hang one camera, put it at a trail intersection. Find a main trail running along a ridge or creek bottom with secondary trails feeding in from the sides. A camera at the junction captures deer moving in multiple directions and gives you a complete picture of how the area is used.

When to Check Cameras

This is where most hunters blow it. Every time you walk to a camera, you leave scent, create noise, and alert deer to human presence. The less you check, the better your data.

Standard cameras: Check every two to four weeks, minimum. Plan your route in and out just like you would a hunt — rubber boots, scent-free clothing, and a route that avoids bedding areas.

Cellular cameras: These are a game changer. Photos transmit to your phone in real time, so you never have to visit the camera except to swap batteries or SD cards. The upfront cost is higher, but the reduction in pressure is worth every dollar. If you're serious about hunting mature bucks on a specific property, cell cams are the move.

Camera Settings

Set your camera to take a 3-photo burst with a 30-second delay between triggers. This gives you enough images to see the full animal (and what's behind it) without filling your card with 10,000 photos of the same doe. Time-lapse mode on food plots — one photo every 5 minutes during the last two hours of daylight — is another excellent strategy for patterning evening feeding activity.

The goal is always the same: maximum intel, minimum intrusion. Let the cameras do the scouting so you don't have to.