Hello,
I am new to the forum and looking for some advice with the Camtraptions V3 sensor.
A friend and I have a series of twelve trail cams placed around a local beaver pond.
The project started as a way to catch the poacher who illegally killed the first set of beavers.
However, after a year of watching the variety of animal activity around the pond, I decided to build a DSLR camera trap to take higher quality pictures. Mine is based on the Pentax K-70 and uses the Camtraptions V3 sensor and wireless receiver along with upgraded external batteries. Per the landowner’s request we are not using flashes, so the V3 switches are set to “daytime only” and the luminosity dial is set at seven o’clock position to function from dim light to full light.
I have placed the camera at the beavers’ favorite feeding site. A cellular trail cam is placed next to it. Every time the beaver visits the spot, the cellular trail cam sends a photo via text message.
Over the last two months, we have received dozens of cellular images of the beavers on the feeding spot in daytime light, yet only two times has the V3 sensor told the Pentax to take a photo.
It seems that while the trailcams sensors can detect the beavers, the Camtraptions V3 even set on highest sensitivity level cannot. Yet it has been able to detect ducks, dogs, and herons in the exact same spot.
The manufacturer has stated that this is because of the beavers’ wet fur. This is difficult for me to believe, as the regular trailcams can detect the beavers without any problem.
Has anyone else experienced this dichotomy of sensor performance? Does anyone have any ideas?
Thanks in advance for your insight. I know some of you have been at this much longer than I have.
Last edited by TractorGuy; 03-08-2023 at 01:15 AM.
Maybe you don't use bluetooth connection, will it be more accurate to link directly with the shutter cable?Or something closer? The wide open v3 viewing angle is too wide, maybe you can DIY a lens barrel to aim at a narrower and more accurate area, or you can adjust the brightness? That's all I can think of, hope it helps you.
I've also had issues with the PIR V3 sensor. It seems to detect wind movement very well ...but not so good with bird movement (which is what I'm trying to capture). Never had any issues with my Bushnell trap camera (in the same locations, triggering more from birds and less from wind). That said ... it might be a question of settings (sensitivity, sensor placement, angle etc.). Still playing with those.
Perhaps the PIR V3 sensor *is* too wide. I've tried putting a small PVC pipe over it (70mm long) to narrow the viewing field, but no good results. Camtraptions said they might be willing to design/build different sensor optics that focuses on a narrower field ... but I've spent too much money already on something that doesn't seem to work very well. I've just invested in another Bushnell trap camera. Might try to run some parallel tests to get to the bottom of it. The trap camera sensors seem to be well tuned (at least the Bushnell HD ones I've used are).
Anyway, would love to hear if you have any further resolution to the PIR v3 sensor.
Thank you both for your suggestions. I rebuilt the enclosure to use a direct wired connection. I also tried different combinations of dial positions for the three adjustments. I also adjusted the "wings" to different positions. I tried various mounting positions for the sensor. In the end I got one usable picture. Out of frustration, I then switched to an active beam sensor from eBay which seemed to be more reliable.
I tried everything I could think of to make it work. Meanwhile, the cellular trailcam keeps on taking pictures. Frustrating
Last edited by TractorGuy; 06-08-2023 at 09:39 PM.
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