Replace your binoculars with a camera...

[WildassJoe]

HI folks... I no longer carry binoculars into the field... I carry a Canon SX10 camera and my hunting trips have turned into a photo safari... I can show my fellow hunters pictures of exactly what I saw and where the trails are and what time they showed up... it has changed my hunting for the better! no doubt no question the proof is in the pictures and not in what "I think I saw"... here are some pics from a couple of hunting adventures. Enjoy!
my advantages are clear...
1. The Canon SX series (The SX1, SX10, and SX20) uses standard AA batteries and I can shoot all day and have spares in my pack. (btw-you can't recharge camera batteries on a tree) LoL
2. uses standard SD cards... Available everywhere and cheap too!
3. Has a built in long zoom lens. Just point, zoom and shoot I do not have to carrying extra lenses into the field... this thing has it all!
4. after the hunt you can research and study exactly where the deer trails are and then adjust your hunting blind or stand position!
5. BONUS you can share the pics with hunting buddies and have indisputable proof of what you saw!

[tdub24]

Great looking pics, I'm curious, at what distance were these pictures taken? How far can you "glass" with the camera? Some of the places I hunt you could glass anywhere from 1-5 miles and I don't see a camera being able to do that. I too carry a camera for when a quality picture presents itself, but binos and my spotting scope is what is needed to find game out my way.

[Kevin Root]

There is some pretty cool technology out there. But as I've been reminded recently, be careful how much one shares unless you want to share it. With cell phones, and cameras out there these days that capture GPS locations and other information embedded in the photo and unless you clear that information or turn off the GPS location feature, one could possibly share a bit more than they wanted by sharing their honey hole too .

Emailing someone a picture of that awesome buck or bull you killed or are planning to kill is cool but some information on those exact location sites is best kept under wraps unless you really want to share it all.....

Oh, nice pictures by the way WildassJoe. Photo safari hunting is pretty fun and I enjoy that myself.

[BKC]

There is some pretty cool technology out there. But as I've been reminded recently, be careful how much one shares unless you want to share it. With cell phones, and cameras out there these days that capture GPS locations and other information embedded in the photo and unless you clear that information or turn off the GPS location feature, one could possibly share a bit more than they wanted by sharing their honey hole too .

Emailing someone a picture of that awesome buck or bull you killed or are planning to kill is cool but some information on those exact location sites is best kept under wraps unless you really want to share it all.....

Oh, nice pictures by the way WildassJoe. Photo safari hunting is pretty fun and I enjoy that myself.

Kevin, I could not agree with you more. I always try to take pictures without a horizon in the view which may show some terrain, landmark, groups of trees, farm house, mountain top, etc... I never even thought about gps coordinates imbedded in pictures, I know I can sort pictures by location ( so the phone must know where I am taking the photo) so I will now have to turn that feature off. Thanks for the heads up.

[Bitterroot Bulls]

I would definitely not recommend replacing your binoculars with a camera. I do definitely recommend supplementing one with the other.

That geotagging is a bugger. Child predators will cruise social networking sites and pull off GPS coordinates off of your kid pictures for the location of your house, their school, favorite park, etc. Scary stuff.

[hardstalk]

This whole post has me a bit confused.. Are you promoting your photography by chance?

[Grantbvfd]

My wife has a photography business and has some really nice cameras, that being said I could never substitute my binos for a camera. Cameras serve a purpose and glassing isn't one of them.

[buckbull]

Why wouldn't you just digiscope with a nice spotting scope and camera/camera phone?? I also wouldn't say sd cards are "cheap".

[WildassJoe]

Hi guys, I enjoy shooting deer with a camera, rifle and bow! Ok, lets go down the list of questions.
@tbub24- at what distance? some are about a hundred yards and others are across the canyon... the camera has a 20x optical zoom and im not sure the amount digital zoom... but it can reach out a long long way... and with my tripod and good light I can get a pretty good pic.. I used to take both binos and camera and find myself only using the camera a lot more... I pretty much phased out my binos.
@Kevin Root- That is a great point on GPS imbedded in pics... and I avoid that by taking "screen shots" of my hi res pics and then only posting those low res snapshots... avoids the whole gps thing.. great observation btw!!...
@Bitterroot Bulls- im only suggesting it because so many hunting adventures do not actually require binoculars. in my humble opinion, if you need binos to see the deer... then the deer are too far to shoot at anyway... might as well take some pics... and it depends on the terrain and hunting environment... some hunting is hundred yards max why the binos? now with that said lots of different types of hunting... there are hunts that have mountains to hike across and canyons to scale to then set up to make the shot... then there are desert areas with long distances... every case has its merits... I made my decision based on weight and hiking with extra gear that may or may not be needed... in Texas I have long sendaros to hunt.. or hi-lines and im sitting in a box stand and I drove up to it and loaded the stand with my equipment... in California total different story... it mountains and its a long hike back to camp. and every bit of gear weight matters... to each his own I guess... but for me I have ruled out large big binos and spotting scopes on California mountains... But on horseback... again another story... LOL
@Hardstalk- I place my © on some pics because some people steal pics and repost them as their own... Now, as far as promoting my photography... well, sure, I guess I am! but in reality I am using the pics more as proof of why I dont take my binos... btw, is this bad? am I doing something wrong? Im new to forums so if its out of line please let me know... my intention was to be informative and give reasons why.
@Grantbvfd- I concur and agree... but I am one of those who gets crosseyed using binos and eventually headaches follow... spotting scopes are great but for me the extra weight hiking up and down mountains is why I no longer carry them into the field anymore... because the camera does the trick... just me i guess? I haven't taken my big binos in the field in several years and I dont miss them at all... I reach for the camera...

thank you guys for the comments... I hope I explained my reasons correctly and respectfully...

[hardstalk]

Welcome to eastmans joe. Didnt mean to sound like a hater. Saw the copyrights. The bronx adress on your site, low post count and assumed you were soliciting. Sit down and soak it in my man. Lots of knowledge from all types around here. Promoting your photography or not keep the pics comin. If there is one thing we all have in common its the love for some horn porn. Dead or on hoof.

Also, sell your old binos and get the check book out, these boys will tell you where your bino headaches come from and how to alleviate it. Nice pics by the way.