For a while now I've been fascinated with the idea of making photographs of wildlife using a camera trap, whereupon an animal breaks a beam or passes through a motion sensor essentially taking its own image while the photographer is nowhere to be seen. This is not to be confused with using a trail-camera (such as those produced by Bushnell) which, in principle, does the same thing but it does not have the control nor resolution of a dedicated camera trap.
Camera trap photography has always received a mixed response among wildlife photographers with many seeing it as cheating, that unless you're behind the camera pressing the shutter then it's not real wildlife photography. These comments are usually made by those who have never attempted it or, if they had, hadn't had much success. Over the years, camera trap photos and film footage have been responsible for a deeper understanding of a species; its habits, range, and population which have contributed, in no small part, to its continued conservation. Also, there are times when it simply isn't possible to be there at the time when the animal is likely to visit.
Don't be fooled into thinking it's cheating or is a simpler way of taking photographs. It isn't! In the past, I had limited experience with a modicum of success and even then I was aware as to how difficult the process is. Much of the task is down to pre-visualisation, To assess a scene and visualise how you want to capture that animal and the kind of artificial lighting (essential for crepuscular species such as foxes and badgers) you want to introduce that is either sympathetic and subtle or dramatic. All this is carried out during the day in order to prevent disturbing their night-time wanderings.
Many of you may be aware that I have been photographing badgers in the traditional way for a very long time (35 years), and although nothing ever beats actually being present and witnessing their antics first hand there are times when there is no alternative other than to use other methods, namely a camera-trap. Having now spent the last year and a half dedicated to 'trapping' I can tell you, first hand, it's hard, really hard, even harder than sitting behind a camera in a midge-infested forest for a few hours! Here's why...
So, why did I decide to embark on this rather specialised genre of wildlife photography? Simple. I love a challenge! Also (given that this was 18 months ago), with all the travelling I do I reasoned that while I was away I could, potentially, still be taking pictures back in the UK. I knew of lots of local places where badgers and foxes reside and had permission to work on private land which would make leaving all that expensive gear out for weeks (perhaps months) on end that little bit more doable.
Badgers were to be my primary 'target' and knowing the whereabouts of several setts in relatively remote locations I began my search to find an appropriate setting. It was important I find somewhere away from public footpaths and in quiet woods where the risk of disturbance (or worse) was minimal. I wanted to work well away from the sett so as not to cause any disturbance where, by working along a well-worn badger path some distance away, it had the option to either come to me or use an alternative path. I found a particularly attractive setting in a very quiet area incorporating a fallen branch and so positioned a trail-camera to monitor activity since I didn't want to go to all the effort of introducing flash-units etc only to find the animal only uses the path once a week. Going by how flat the vegetation was, however, I was reasonably confident it was well used and when I returned a week later I was pleased to see lots of video footage of badgers (and the occasional fox) using the path in both directions. Time to bring in the gear!
When you first begin to investigate the world of camera-trapping you invariably head for the internet to see what information can be gleaned from those that have been doing it for some time and although there are a number of YouTube videos (some of which were quite helpful) there isn't really anything out there explaining it all to you. I was pretty much starting from scratch and would have to learn from my own mistakes which, although time-consuming, is always the most fulfilling means. Upon considering a number of beams and PIRs (Passive Infra-red Receivers) I decided to settle on those made by Camtraptions. I won't go into too much detail about all the gear and technique I used as it would be enough to fill a book but one thing they don't tell you about or you, personally, don't give much consideration to is all the peripheral equipment such as supports for your camera, flashes, and sensor. Poles, clamps, tripods, camo-netting, cable ties, rope and string. The list (and cost) goes on and up! That's ontop of purchasing three suitable flash units (there are only a few models that have a sleep mode and that hold their charge for weeks on end), flash triggers, large quantities of rechargeable batteries, and a weatherproof camera housing, Oh, yes, and an enormous backpack to transfer it all to your chosen location!
April 17th 2019
Composition settled upon, it was time to align and test the sensor. Ideally, I wanted to capture the badger as it climbed over the branch.
The hardest part of this kind of work is pre-visualisation. Since you are setting up in daylight you have to pre-visualise how it will look at night, both in terms of composition and illumination. I knew my first few attempts were not going to be up to much and so I decided to not put too much pressure upon myself. At this stage, it was more about becoming familiar with all the equipment and establishing a reliable set-up than obtaining the perfect photograph. That would come later - I hoped!
April 28th @ 20.36
Sensor re-positioning required.
You might be wondering how they reacted to the flash? Well, badgers, like all animals (humans included), have individual personalities. Some don't like it while others are the show-off at the party! I always set up a trail camera for the first couple of weeks to gauge their reactions and I can tell you that after the first few triggers they didn't take any notice whatsoever. This was helped, I think, by the flashes being set to a low power (on manual at 1/4 power) and was probably not that much different to a flash of lightning. Also, they have pretty poor eye-sight and certainly don't rely upon it as much as they do their hearing and sense of smell.
Accessing the site wasn't terribly easy. I could enter the easy way via a public footpath 100 or so metres away within the wood but I would have to be careful that no-one would see me and I also ran the risk of leaving my scent on the badger path which might deter them for the first day or two. The answer was to come in via a very steep bank which, with one false move, would have me plunging down into trees and brush. I managed the first few times grabbing onto branches and the like but after a spell of rain, it was like a mud-slide and next to impossible to climb back up. So, I purchased 30 metres of nylon rope, tied it to the tree at the top, and 'abseiled' down and pulled myself back op.
In order to reduce the risk of contaminating the site with my scent, thereby putting the badgers off (they have avery acute sense of smell), it was important to resist the urge to return and check the camera every couple of nights. If the sensor and flashes had been repositioned I would return after three nights to check on progress and then would leave it out for a week before checking and replacing batteries.
May 1st
Upon seeing the first few images I noticed how poor the composition was and that the PIR required further adjustment. The image was lacking any sense of depth and the flash fall-off rendered the top half of the frame black so I moved in closer. I positioned the key light to the right of the camera and the fill to the left approximately 2 stops less. Both had cardboard snoots attached to prevent too much light spill and rain-covers were put over the flash-units.
May 2nd @ 20.38
Now, we're starting to get somewhere, I thought. But, it was too flat, too one dimensional. Time to re-think.
May 4th
So, I completely altered the angle and decided upon a head-on shot which also emphasised the branch and would, I hoped, make for a more compelling photograph. My key-light was now to the left and the fill next to the camera.
Badgers weren't the only creatures that tripped the PIR. Little did I know at the time that squirrels would regularly use this branch and would, as a result, feature in each session's images. The positioning of the PIR isn't just about making sure your intended subject crosses its path, you also have to reduce the possibility of other stuff that might give you false triggers, such as squirrels, rabbits, cats, mice and all manner of wildlife you might not have considered. Capturing other subjects sounds all well and good until you return and find that the power in your flash-units is exhausted due to 100+ images of squirrels before a badger has had the chance to even leave its sett! This is done by careful repositioning and narrowing the PIR's effective angle. Still, no matter how many times you do this you will, invariably, still end up with pictures of subjects other than your quarry - but then that is all part of the fun!
May 8th @ 00.11
My first successful photograph. As you can see by the time it was triggered that without staying out all night and wearing night-vision goggles there was no way I could have captured this image.
Although satisfied with the sensor's positioning I still wasn't entirely happy with the lighting and so keeping the main light to the left I moved the fill to the right and slightly behind the branch resulting in subtle backlight. Snoots are very important for precise lighting and to avoid lens flare and with pretty much every set-up I use them in varying lengths. On each visit, extra care was also taken not to disturb the scene since it was important to retain its fresh appearance.
You're probably wondering what camera I'm using? One piece of advice I learned early on was to use a camera that wouldn't leave you distraught should it ever get stolen. Even National Geographic photographers (Steve Winter included) use low-end DSLRs due to all the potential hazards that can take place from theft to a tree falling on top of the set-up. However, I am rather impatient when it comes to trying out new skills and I wasn't going to let something like that get in my way so before (sensibly) going online and buying a cheaper model I duly put out my Nikon D810 and 28-105mm lens. At the time I didn't have a weatherproof camera housing either so I just put a rain cover over it and hoped for the best. Thankfully, the D810 and lens are fairly well weather-sealed and there was no harm done.
There were equal numbers of badger-bum images as there were head-ons. A drawback of this PIR is that unlike a Cognisys set-up, for example, you have no control over whether the creature triggers the sensor as it comes in from the left, right, toward or away from you.
The set-up.
In the image below you can see the bank that I needed to descend and ascend.
The camera had been in place for quite some time!
May 21st @ 21.14
One month later and I achieved what I set out to obtain. The backlighting has transformed the image, I think, and has helped separate the main elements from the dark background and reveal the translucency of the leaves and nettles on the right of the frame. All this experimentation has paid dividends with set-ups following this one.
May 23rd @ 22.09
But, there was more to come with the appearance of a handsome fox.
By this time I had purchased a far less expensive camera but one that still delivers amazing quality - the Nikon D3200 which came with an 18-55mm kit lens. Total price £170. It may not have the pro build, high ISO performance, and all the bells and whistles that come with a top of the range camera but all I require is a model with decent resolution and at 24MP the D3200 has that in spades! Optically, the 18-55 is a super little lens and since the vast majority of my camera-trap images are taken around f/8 (the lens' sweet-spot) its quality is more than up to it.
May 28th @ 00.09
With a number of images safely in the bag, it was time to 'play'.
The moral is when you find a really good location with plenty of activity exhaust all possibilities before moving on. When I returned earlier this year to the same place the branch which they had been walking over had now snapped (presumably under their weight) so I was especially pleased I did all I could last year.
June 4th @ 01.01
By turning off the fill-light, completely, and increasing the power of the main a more nocturnal quality was achieved.
I lost count of how many visits I paid to the set-up during that seven week period, but looking back I would estimate in the region of 15. Each would require a 20-minute drive then a 20-minute walk, 1 hour at the site then, of course, another 20-minute walk back to the car and 20-minute drive home. For the sake of arguing, let's say a 2-hour round trip.
13 miles round trip x 15 visits = 195 miles
1/2 mile walk to the site and back. 1 mile x 15 = 15 miles walked
Time spent. 2 hours x 15 visits = 30 hours
As you can see, quite a bit of time and effort went into the shoot but it's what you do, isn't it, when you really enjoy doing something? You look forward to it where, actually, it doesn't seem like much of an effort at all.
Was it all worth it? Absolutely! Would I do it all again? Well, since then I have invested in more equipment, and up until relatively recently, I was working at three sites simultaneously, each with varying degrees of success. I figured the more traps I set up the quicker I would learn. The curve is no longer quite so steep but the enjoyment of working on new subjects and sites is as great as it was eighteen months ago. The project continues...
