My Camera Trap Photography Setup

Ron NiebruggeArizona, Travel, Tucson Leave a Comment

Camera trap setup, Desert Photo Retreat, near Tucson, Arizona.

Camera trap setup, Desert Photo Retreat, near Tucson, Arizona.

A lot of people have been asking about my camera trap setup, and how I’m able to get the animals to face me.  We here are some photos.  I built a temporary wall to not only protect my camera, but to limit access to the water hole.  My camera is in the wood box, and I have wireless flashes in the two plastic containers.

Front side of my camera trap.

Front side of my camera trap.

This is the view from the other side showing the water hole.  On the left you can see my trigger which here I’m using a Cognisys Sabre which has a very sophisticated LIDAR (like laser) system.   If you want to learn more, I’m offering an ongoing workshop where I cover many of the aspects of camera trapping, and then we set your camera up for the night.  You should come away with something as we have multiple visit to the water hole each night. Last weekend I had a guest come away with two gray fox and a full moon in the same frame!  For more information:  Camera trapping photo workshop.

Javelina Morning

Ron NiebruggeArizona, Photos, Travel, Tucson 5 Comments

Javelina at the upper water hole blind at sunrise, Desert Photo Retreat, near Tucson, Arizona.

Javelina at the upper water hole blind at sunrise, Desert Photo Retreat, near Tucson, Arizona.

Yesterday morning.  At this point, they had already knocked down my flash on camera right, and within a couple of frames, they would knock down my fancy LIDAR (like laser) trigger system.  Too bad as the sky really lit up after this.

Gray Fox at the Water Hole

Ron NiebruggeArizona, Photos, Travel 1 Comment

Gray fox at the waterhole in front of the upper blind, Desert Photo Retreat, Tucson, Arizona.

Gray fox at the waterhole in front of the upper blind, Desert Photo Retreat, Tucson, Arizona.

So last night I moved my camera trap setup to in front of the waterhole at my upper blind.  This fox was sure curious.

Gray Fox at Night

Ron NiebruggeArizona, Photos, Travel, Tucson 2 Comments

Gray fox, Desert Photo Retreat, near Tucson, Arizona.

Gray fox, Desert Photo Retreat, near Tucson, Arizona.

I added a couple of flashes to my camera trapping setup and put it out at my waterhole at night.  It was busy with gray fox and javelina!

Camera Trap Cardinal

Ron NiebruggeArizona, Photos, Travel, Tucson 2 Comments

Northern Cardinal Female at the Desert Photo Retreat, near Tucson, Arizona.

Northern Cardinal Female at the Desert Photo Retreat, near Tucson, Arizona.

The flash left a little bit of a ghost image due to the sync rate – next time will go to high speed sync!  This was also with a remote camera trap.

Black-throated Sparrows

Ron NiebruggeArizona, Photos, Travel, Tucson Leave a Comment

A couple of Black-throated Sparrows fighting for the same perch, Desert Photo Retreat, near Tucson, Arizona.

A couple of Black-throated Sparrows fighting for the same perch, Desert Photo Retreat, near Tucson, Arizona.

I was having fun yesterday with some camera trap photography – this was captured with a wide-angle lens about 2 feet from the birds.  Come learn camera trapping from me!