Do camera’s and social media affect your hunting psyche?

[DaveT1963]

I feel the same way about cameras. There's just no other way I'd be able to put in the time scouting and hunting to equal the amount of info a camera can give you.

I guess whether they affect my hunting psyche in a positive or negative manner depends on what I get on camera. They have motivated me more often than not. But there have been times when I feel like I have nothing to hunt, so I either don't, settle for what I can get, or try somewhere new and hope for the best.

I will say this - a lot of guys would be shocked if they knew what was walking around at night. And trust me, when you know a true brute is in the area, then letting those smaller/younger bucks walk is a lot easier... same thing for sitting all day/longer - man it helps when you know what is walking around in the area.

 

[Wirrex]

I hate social media and deleted my accounts years ago.

Cameras are kind of cool but they can also be discouraging even though they don’t tell the full story.

 

[skell]

Interesting discussion. I'm probably an anomaly for my part of the county. I'm in the heart of Iowa, hunting public ground. I do a fair amount of post season scouting and have been working to have a much better understanding of the ground I hunt. I don't use trail cameras. I spend a ridiculous amount of time looking at aerials, topos, and hillshade maps. Filling my head, gps, and computer with information I hope to capitalize on one day. With that said, I'm at a time in my life when deer hunting takes a bit of a backseat (Sorry Team 3 ). With 2 little boys (1 & 4), my goal this year was to fill tags as quickly as possible. Antler was not a priority.

I can't say I pay much attention to the size of deer taken by those in the hunt filming industry. I do like to see the deer taken by friends...but I understand each of their situations. This site is refreshing in that everyone is much more realistic than the bulk of the net. And it is not simply about big bucks...there is a real interest in perfecting our craft and an appreciation for the animal we are chasing with every harvest being a blessing. This is definitely not the norm on some of the sites.

Like some others here, my only social media addiction is SaddleHunter.com. And I am VERY guilty of reading it while hunting.

 

[BenG]

There are a lot of hunting shows that make me flat out angry. Some have respected and knowledgeable people that really know a lot about hunting but then take the easy way out and it gets pretty disgusting to watch. They just don’t interest me for the most part anymore because they aren’t real to me. But then you have some really good stuff being put out there namely the hunting public guys and the whitetail adrenaline guys. Now I know they have a lot more time to hunt than most of us but it’s way easier to relate to them and I can feel genuinely happy for them when they are successful.

 

[IkemanTX]

They do effect my psyche, and I think for the better. It sure is easier to pass on smaller bucks knowing there’s a nice one around. And it is reinvigorating to know a target made it through gun season!


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[huck72412]

They do effect my psyche, and I think for the better. It sure is easier to pass on smaller bucks knowing there’s a nice one around. And it is reinvigorating to know a target made it through gun season!


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Great view!!!! I feel the same way.

 

[Ontariofarmer]

It is easier to pass on an animal if it is early season. Mid season I will put one in the freezer and later l will hope for a nice buck
I usually get two bow tags. Waiting means one was tag soup this year


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[joshua8286]

I hunt almost exclusively public land. When I started bow hunting public land for some reason I thought everyone would leave everything alone and hunters were above theft. I was wrong. I got treestands stolen. I got trail cameras stolen. I got blinds stolen. So I don't use any of those things anymore on public land. We have one Lease of 130 Acres and I have to say I enjoy hunting public land more because of the skills it takes to hunt public land. You don't have to have food plots you don't have to have feeders success is solely based on the skill set of the hunter. I feel more satisfaction killing a deer on public land than a big buck on private land. To each their own the trophy is in the eye of the Hunter I have more enjoyable hunts with my kids then I do killing a140 inch buck.

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[kdice50064]

Interesting story and great buck as well.

There was more to the story, too. About an hour before my buck came through, my nephew, who hunted with me that weekend found another guy in the spot I sent him to. He rendezvoused with me, and I sent him about 150 yards up the ridge, covering a sharply defined ravine head. About 20 minutes after I shot, I was enjoying some coffee when I heard his 44 mag bark. I looked up his direction just in time to see a dandy buck crash and slide downhill across the ravine.

Both deer killed before 8:30 in the morning, but two trips over a mile took us until 4pm. What a day!

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[jryser]

There was more to the story, too. About an hour before my buck came through, my nephew, who hunted with me that weekend found another guy in the spot I sent him to. He rendezvoused with me, and I sent him about 150 yards up the ridge, covering a sharply defined ravine head. About 20 minutes after I shot, I was enjoying some coffee when I heard his 44 mag bark. I looked up his direction just in time to see a dandy buck crash and slide downhill across the ravine.

Both deer killed before 8:30 in the morning, but two trips over a mile took us until 4pm. What a day!

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You gotta love a story like that! Congrats!!!


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[joshua8286]

There was more to the story, too. About an hour before my buck came through, my nephew, who hunted with me that weekend found another guy in the spot I sent him to. He rendezvoused with me, and I sent him about 150 yards up the ridge, covering a sharply defined ravine head. About 20 minutes after I shot, I was enjoying some coffee when I heard his 44 mag bark. I looked up his direction just in time to see a dandy buck crash and slide downhill across the ravine.

Both deer killed before 8:30 in the morning, but two trips over a mile took us until 4pm. What a day!

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Great job nothing like hunting with family. Nice bucks!

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[fawnzy]

My time to hunt is very limited.
I go for 9 days with a camp. I’m the only pole dancer in the group. We use dogs to move the deer. The camp has been running since 1944 so we know where the pressured deer move and have designated locations to hunt. The saddle not only gives me height advantage but also allows me to shift my location slightly and cover off much more terrain.
So, the answer is no, media doesn’t affect my hunting.
G2 affects my spending......help me......


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[simple man]

This is the first year in a couple of years that I have not had the Sportsmens package on my satellite. I chose not to watch all those hunting shows this year. I did not want to pollute my brain with false hopes and dreams. You can learn viable information from the shows if you leased land in Iowa or Missouri. But for the rest of the 99 % community this is not a reality. I used to enjoy watching those shows but now it's almost like watching fake news !!!
As far as trail cameras goes. I think they are useful for gathering information for next year unless you have a cellular camera. I'll believe in some heavily pressured areas. A buck getting his picture taken just once may alter his travel pattern. For the area I hunt. I run Trail cameras starting in September through December. And the best information I have gotten from them is places to hunt next year since deer are creatures of habit. In late October this past deer season. I got pictures of two good bucks checking trails leading to and from a Doe bedding area. Prior to getting these photos. I always thought they did not come out during daylight until the chasing phase in my hunting area. So next year I will have a cellular camera and hunt the edges of theses areas in late October.


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[IkemanTX]

I hunt almost exclusively public land. When I started bow hunting public land for some reason I thought everyone would leave everything alone and hunters were above theft. I was wrong. I got treestands stolen. I got trail cameras stolen. I got blinds stolen. So I don't use any of those things anymore on public land. We have one Lease of 130 Acres and I have to say I enjoy hunting public land more because of the skills it takes to hunt public land. You don't have to have food plots you don't have to have feeders success is solely based on the skill set of the hunter. I feel more satisfaction killing a deer on public land than a big buck on private land. To each their own the trophy is in the eye of the Hunter I have more enjoyable hunts with my kids then I do killing a140 inch buck.

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I run my cameras 10-12 feet up and have never had anyone even look up at the camera so far. The chance of someone walking through the woods in the off season with a climbing system are fairly slim.
I use a homemade mount that screws into the tree so there is no strap around the trunk to catch someone’s attention. I use only no-glow cameras so the flash doesn’t give away the position in the night or twilight hours. And, I don’t place cameras in areas with no back cover. 3 years without a single camera messed with. (Or any evidence of being noticed for that matter)

How I mount them. It allows complete adjustability.

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[joshua8286]

I run my cameras 10-12 feet up and have never had anyone even look up at the camera so far. The chance of someone walking through the woods in the off season with a climbing system are fairly slim.
I use a homemade mount that screws into the tree so there is no strap around the trunk to catch someone’s attention. I use only no-glow cameras so the flash doesn’t give away the position in the night or twilight hours. And, I don’t place cameras in areas with no back cover. 3 years without a single camera messed with. (Or any evidence of being noticed for that matter)

How I mount them. It allows complete adjustability.

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Thx for the reply I appreciate it. I will have to try that.

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[BenG]

I run my cameras 10-12 feet up and have never had anyone even look up at the camera so far. The chance of someone walking through the woods in the off season with a climbing system are fairly slim.
I use a homemade mount that screws into the tree so there is no strap around the trunk to catch someone’s attention. I use only no-glow cameras so the flash doesn’t give away the position in the night or twilight hours. And, I don’t place cameras in areas with no back cover. 3 years without a single camera messed with. (Or any evidence of being noticed for that matter)

How I mount them. It allows complete adjustability.

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That mount sure looks like it’d be easier than the way I do it! I put mine up high also and then I gotta try to find a stick that’s the right size and then I have to go up and adjust it several times to get the right angle. I’m sure it wouldn’t hurt the tree but the screw part would technically be illegal for me to use but I really like it. I haven’t had any cameras stolen either but I don’t put them where I think people will be and pull most of them before the season. Had a card stolen once.

 

[IkemanTX]

That mount sure looks like it’d be easier than the way I do it! I put mine up high also and then I gotta try to find a stick that’s the right size and then I have to go up and adjust it several times to get the right angle. I’m sure it wouldn’t hurt the tree but the screw part would technically be illegal for me to use but I really like it. I haven’t had any cameras stolen either but I don’t put them where I think people will be and pull most of them before the season. Had a card stolen once.

Shhh.... don’t tell anyone, but I use them on forestry and grassland properties as well.

DIY Sportsman has a video with a no damage mod.


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[redsquirrel]

I run my cameras 10-12 feet up and have never had anyone even look up at the camera so far. The chance of someone walking through the woods in the off season with a climbing system are fairly slim.
I use a homemade mount that screws into the tree so there is no strap around the trunk to catch someone’s attention. I use only no-glow cameras so the flash doesn’t give away the position in the night or twilight hours. And, I don’t place cameras in areas with no back cover. 3 years without a single camera messed with. (Or any evidence of being noticed for that matter)

How I mount them. It allows complete adjustability.

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I like it. But the bears around here would have a field day if I did that. I have to put all my cams in bear boxes otherwise the bears destroy them!

 

[DaveT1963]

I like it. But the bears around here would have a field day if I did that. I have to put all my cams in bear boxes otherwise the bears destroy them!

One trick I often do is attach my cameras to a limb coming off the trunk. I carry an old API ladder sections to put in place. One most thieves don't seem to notice them out on a limb, second bears probably wont get to them 3-4 foot from trunk. Of course we don't have bears down here so not a problem but I am starting to drop cameras in Ark and they have nears

 

[IkemanTX]

I like it. But the bears around here would have a field day if I did that. I have to put all my cams in bear boxes otherwise the bears destroy them!

Ya, I basically don’t have to deal with bears down here. There was one tree’d a couple years ago in one of the counties I hunt, but it was the first confirmed sighting in MANY decades.


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