TECH NOTE – Get Better Images
GET BETTER IMAGES
We here it all the time, “All I want is pictures of deer, I don’t care about image quality.” Until
that person gets a picture of a monster buck and wishes the images was better.
they appreciate the quality that goes into Cuddeback cameras.
That is when
But, even with Cuddeback
cameras there are things you can do to assure you get the best images possible.
VIEWING IMAGES
We will start with the bad news first. Inexpensive PCs have lower grade displays. New PCs have
excellent video displays with resolutions of 1280x800 and greater. There is a huge difference in
quality with these better display that will make all your trail camera images look better.
The
best way to get one of those video displays is with the new crop of Windows tablets that can be
found for under $200; or a new laptop. Refer to Cuddeback’s computer tech note for details.
TROPHY ROOM
Cuddeback’s free Windows program Trophy Room is an excellent trail camera image manager
and viewer.
It has features to brighten dark images to make them look better. See Trophy
Room on the Cuddeback website.
CAMERA SELECTION
The camera illumination type does make a difference in image quality.
Flash cameras will record the best quality images with full color day and night.
IR cameras are next in the image quality ranking and will record full color day images,
and black and white images at night.
No Glow IR cameras (Black Flash®) will record lower quality night images than IR and
has less illumination range.
In the Cuddeback line of cameras the more the camera cost the better the image quality.
For
example, Cuddeback offers the Long Range IR model E2, and the Extreme Range IR model C2.
The C2 is more expensive and features a more powerful illuminator, thus the night images from
a C2 can be better than the night images from an E2.
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TECH NOTE – Get Better Images
CAMERA SETUP
How you setup your camera can make a difference in image quality.
Brush and grass – remove all brush and grass that is directly in front of the camera.
Background – try to aim the camera at some background, such as a tree line. The background
should be no more than 50 feet from the camera. The background will bounce light back to the
camera and help illuminate night subject.
Distance to animal – the closer the camera is the animal the better the image will be. 10 to 20
feet is optimum. As the animal gets farther from the camera the image quality can degrade.
Scenery – look at the surrounding trees and terrain. Setup your camera to have the best
looking features within the field of view and the background. Think like a photographer.
Fields – It is very difficult to get good images in an open field. Without any light to bounce the
light back to the camera the images can be dark and underexposed, which can result in more
motion blur (with IR or Black Flash cameras). If you must set your camera in a fields, try to find
a narrow spot with a background. If you cannot find a spot like that, then you must accept the
lower grade images that will result – which is ok as you really are trying to get pictures of
animals and sometime compromises must be made.
Aiming you Cuddeback camera – You want to make sure your camera is aimed such that
animals are centered in the field of view of the camera. But, aiming the camera is not as easy as
it sounds. Over the years some manufactures have used aiming lasers, but lasers are hard to see
in bright daylight.
We suggest a simple aiming method utilizing the camera on your cellphone.
1. Enable the FRONT camera on your cell phone
2. Hold the phone against the Genius mount
3. The camera’s view will be displayed on the phone
4. Adjust the aim of the Genius mount as required
5. Attach your Cuddeback and its aim will be nearly identical to what was displayed on the
cellphone.
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