The future of trail cams?

[Ohiosam]

Talked to a guy last night that had some inside info on the next big thing in trail cameras. They’re incorporating lasers that will be able to score a deer’s antlers. There will also be hand held versions that you could score an animal before you shoot. The data could also be used to 3D print exact copies of antlers. I was told these are expected to be $300 in a 1/2 dozen years. Maybe this is old news but it’s the first I’d heard of it.

 

[giles]

I dont like it, not even a little bit. What ever happened to the element of surprise when hunting? The thrill of not knowing what was going to walk out. Guys having to do research and use woodman-ship to kill deer. Now we have cams that score deer? Will this make the TV stars tell the truth?

I should stop talking before I piss off the trophy hunting community...#meathunterforlife

 

[brock ratcliff]

BEC worked on that ten years ago. I don’t know if they ever planned to do anything with it but they said it was certainly doable. I’m surprised it hasn’t already come to the market honestly.

 

[Sgt Fury]

Trailcams are great for seeing what deer are frequenting your area so that if you know there is a good one hanging around, you can spend more time at that stand. It also helps you pass those good bucks knowing there is a great buck there. Also helps to see if there are trespassers on your place. I think the laser scoring is a bit too much. Doesn’t matter what the score is, just knowing you killed the most mature deer in your area is enough for me. I still haven’t scored last years buck and am guessing he’ll be around a 150” eight point. I’m happy knowing that this was the biggest buck on my property and I was lucky enough to harvest him.

 

[Chass]

That fad if it ever comes to fruition will fade quick. Trail cams cant ensure they get the entire rack. And that feature is limiting your customer base to trophy deer hunters so it will never get developed to the point it gave good results. I'm curious to who this insider was.

 

[cspot]

I thought someone already had a program that you could upload pics to and it would score? My opinion it may be neat, but I sure wouldn't pay extra money for the feature.

 

["J"]

What’s a trail camera?

 

[bowhunter1023]

 

[CJD3]

I don’t like it either.

 

[Ohiosam]

I believe that the target market for this is trophy hunting guides and game farms. Not just deer but all game animals including African. With a hand held unit guide will be able to tell a client exactly what a particular animal will score. If there are several good ones together the client will be able to pick the best. If there’s a trophy fee the guide can tell the client the exact cost. Game ranches could inventory good animals and keep track of growth.

I see the attraction to a certain segment of the hunting community but there is certainly a side to this that I’m not comfortable with at all.

 

[giles]

To far...just going to push it further towards the “my deer” all about me bull that has ruined this way of life.

 

[jagermeister]

I don't like the emphasis on antlers either, but the technology sounds pretty cool. But they better figure out a power supply to handle that extra demand first.

 

[Chass]

I believe that the target market for this is trophy hunting guides and game farms. Not just deer but all game animals including African. With a hand held unit guide will be able to tell a client exactly what a particular animal will score. If there are several good ones together the client will be able to pick the best. If there’s a trophy fee the guide can tell the client the exact cost. Game ranches could inventory good animals and keep track of growth.

I see the attraction to a certain segment of the hunting community but there is certainly a side to this that I’m not comfortable with at all.

The design cost for one species if it's actually reliable would price it higher than any cell cam, throw in multiple species recognition for scoring? Sorry no way in hell. To make it reliable with lasers you would need it to be extremely close or lasers on all sides to get a good reading for anything. Then you must calculate it off of average measurements on other parts of the animal such as ears, eyes ect. Just like what is common for a good field judge in the first place. And this is why the photo scoring app never took off. Near impossible to score something 3d from a fixed position or 2d image.