Bushnell 119626C User Manual

INSTRUCTION MANUAL

Model#: 119626C 03-14

IMPORTANT NOTE

Congratulations on your purchase of one of the best trail cameras on the market! Bushnell is very proud of this little unit and we are sure you will be pleased with it as well. We appreciate your business and want to earn your trust. Please refer to the notes below and the instructions in this manual to ensure that you are completely satisﬁed with this product.

If your Bushnell Trophy Cam does not seem to be functioning properly or if you are having photo/video quality issues, please check the Troubleshooting/FAQ section on pages 27-31. Problems are often due to something simple that was overlooked, or require only changing one setting to solve.

If your problem continues after trying the solutions in the Troubleshooting/FAQ section, please call Bushnell Customer Service at (800) 423-3537. In Canada, call (800) 361-5702.

Bushnell recommends using 8 Energizer® Lithium AA batteries in

this Trophy Cam model to obtain maximum battery life

Do not mix old and new batteries

Do not mix battery types-use ALL lithium or ALL alkaline

Rechargeable batteries are NOT recommended

Bushnell recommends using SanDisk® SD and SDHC Cards

(up to 32GB capacity) in all Trophy Cams

INTRODUCTION

About the Trophy Cam

The Bushnell Trophy Cam is a digital scouting camera. It can be triggered by any movement of game in a location, detected by a highly sensitive Passive Infra-Red (PIR) motion sensor, and then take high quality pictures (up to 6MP still photos), or video clips.

The Trophy Cam consumes very little power (less than 300mA) in a stand- by (surveillance) state. This means it can deliver up to six months stand-by operation time when the device is powered by eight AA alkaline batteries, and up to twelve months utilizing lithium AA batteries. Once motion in the monitored area is detected, the digital camera unit will be triggered at once (typically less than one second) and then automatically take photos or videos according to previously programmed settings. The Trophy Cam is equipped with built-in infrared LEDs that function as a ﬂash, so that it delivers clear photos or videos (in black & white) even in the dark, and it can take color photos or videos under sufﬁcient daylight. The Trophy Cam is designed for outdoor use and is resistant against water and snow. Your trail camera is one of the latest generation of Bushnell Trophy Cams, and includes many new or improved features, such as:

• Auto PIR Sensitivity-the camera monitors ambient temperature conditions and automatically adjusts the sensor/trigger signal to be more sensitive to slight variations in temperature on hot days, less sensitive on cold days.

• Field Scan 2x with Live Trigger-The “time lapse” feature added in last year’s models has been enhanced with the addition of the option for a second block of recording with its own start/stop times. Trigger signals generated by nearby wildlife activity will still generate additional photos/videos as they normally would, independently of the Field Scan operation.

• Audio Recording capability in Video Mode.

Applications

The Trophy Cam can be used as a trail camera for hunting or scouting game. It is also suitable for surveillance usage.

PARTS AND CONTROLS

The Trophy Cam provides the following connections for external devices: USB port, SD card slot, TV Out, and external DC power in (Fig. 1).

A 3-way power switch is used to select the main operating modes: OFF, SETUP, and ON (Fig. 2).

A control key interface with six keys is primarily used in SETUP mode to select operational functions and parameters. As shown in Fig. 2, these keys are: UP, DOWN, LE FT, RIGHT, OK and MENU. Four of the keys can also perform a second function (shortcut operations in SETUP mode) in addition to their main function: The DOWN key can be used to set the camera to Photo mode (still camera icon), and the UP key can set the camera to Video mode (movie camera icon). The RIGHT key also serves as the manual shutter (“SHOT”) button of the camera and the OK key switches the camera to the Playback (“REPLAY”) mode. These secondary functions are indicated by icons or text above the key as shown in Fig. 2.

BACK VIEW

Cable to Battery Compartment

LCD Screen

Power/Mode Switch

ON SETUP OFF

UP/Video

DOWN/Photo

LEFT

OK/Replay

RIGHT/Shot

Fig. 2: Button and Switch Guide

PARTS AND CONTROLS

TV Out

DC In

Video Mic

SD Card Slot

Fig. 1: Connections

FRONT VIEW

USB Port

Video Mic

DC in Cover Plug

LED IR Flash

Motion/ Low Battery Indicator

Lens

Lock Hole

PIR Sensor

Tripod Socket

INSTALLING THE BATTERIES AND SD CARD

Before you begin learning how to use your Trophy Cam, you will ﬁrst need to install a set of batteries and insert an SD card. Although that may only take you a minute, there are some important notes about both batteries and SD cards you should be aware of, so please take the time to read the following directions and cautions:

Loading Batteries

After opening the two latches on the right side of the Trophy Cam, you will see that the Trophy Cam has eight battery slots. Starting at the top of the battery compartment, slots 1, 2, 3 and 4 form one group, while slots 5, 6, 7 and 8 form the other group, each providing 6 volts in parallel. For maximum battery life, you should install a full set of eight batteries. The Trophy Cam may also be operated by just four batteries installed in the top group only (see right), starting at slot 1. Battery life will be shorter with 4 batteries, but the camera will operate normally. Whether you use 4 or 8, be sure to insert each battery with correct polarity (negative or “ﬂat” end against the long spring of each battery slot). Bushnell recommends using eight new lithium AA (Energizer® brand) or alkaline AA batteries. NiMh Rechargeable batteries can also be used, but they might have a shorter life span due to their reduced efﬁciency over time and at low temperature. It is also possible to use a lead-acid external battery cell

with 6V output or suitable AC adapter-see below for more details.

Using an External Power Source (optional, user provided)

Optionally, you can connect an external 6V DC power source to the “DC In” jack at the bottom of the Trophy Cam. It is recommended to use a power source with a current output greater than 1000mA. However, during bright daytime operation when no ﬂash is required, the Trophy Cam can function with much less current (>400mA). Please use a compatible power source cable (not provided) to connect the external DC power source with the power input jack of the Trophy Cam, making sure that the polarity is correct. Note:

The power connector is a 4.0x1.7mm coaxial DC power plug with positive “tip” (inside pin) polarity (Radio Shack P/N 274-1532 or equivalent).

If both an external power source is connected and batteries are installed, the Trophy Cam will be powered by the external power source.

When the batteries become weak, the low-battery indicator LED will glow blue, indicating the batteries should be changed (pg 5, “Front View”).

Inserting the SD Card

The Trophy Cams have 32MB internal memory, which can hold only about 20 photos (@ 5MP resolution). This is handy for testing and getting familiar with the camera, but you will no doubt want to leave the camera unattended for longer than a day, so using an SD card is recommended. Insert the SD card (with the camera’s power switch in the OFF position) before beginning to operate the camera. Don’t insert or remove the SD card when the power switch is in the ON position.

The Trophy Cam uses a standard SD (Secure Digital) memory card to save photos (in .jpg format) and/or videos (in .avi format). SD and SDHC (High Capacity) cards up to a maximum 32GB capacity are supported. Before inserting the SD card into the card slot after opening the camera’s front cover, please make sure that the write-protect switch on the side of the card is “off” (NOT in the “Lock” position). The following describes how to insert and remove the SD card:

• Insert the SD card into the card slot with its label side upwards (see above). A “click” sound indicates that the card is installed successfully. If the wrong side of the card is facing up, you will not be able to insert it without force-there is only one correct way to insert cards. If the SD card is not installed correctly, the device will not display an SD card icon on the LCD in SETUP mode (the SD card icon displayed after switching to SETUP mode will have a “lock” symbol inside it in it if the card is locked). Formatting the SD card by using the Trophy Cam’s “Format” parameter before using it for the ﬁrst time is recommended, especially when a card has been used in other devices (see “Format”, pg. 19, for details).

• To take out the SD card, just gently push in the card (do not try to pull it out without pushing in ﬁrst). The card is released from the slot and ready to be removed when you hear the click. Be sure the camera’s power is switched OFF before inserting or removing SD cards or batteries.

USING THE TROPHY CAM

Once you’ve prepared your Trophy Cam by properly installing batteries and an SD card, you could simply take it outside, strap it to a tree, switch it on and leave-and you might get some great photos that are exactly what you wanted. However, we highly recommend that you ﬁrst spend some additional time indoors with this manual and your camera until you know a bit more about what the 3-way switch and those control keys do. If nothing else, you’ll probably want to at least set the date and time so the camera will imprint them (or not-it’s your option) on your photos as they are taken, learn how to set the camera to shoot video clips instead of still photos if you like, and read some tips about mounting it on a tree.

THE OFF, ON, AND SETUP MODES

The Trophy Cam has three basic operational modes:

• OFF mode: Power switch in the OFF position.

• ON mode: Power switch in the ON position (LCD screen is off.)

• SETUP mode: Power switch at SETUP position (LCD screen is on).

OFF MODE

The OFF mode is the “safe” mode when any actions must be taken, e.g., replacing the SD card or batteries, or transporting the device. You will also use OFF mode if you connect the camera to a computer’s USB port later to download your photos/videos. And of course, when you are storing or not using the camera, you will switch it to OFF. Please note that even in the OFF mode the Trophy Cam still consumes power at a very low level. Therefore, it’s a good idea to take the batteries out of the battery compartment if the camera will not be used for a long time.

ON MODE

Anytime after the batteries and SD card have been inserted, you can switch on the camera. When the power switch is moved to the top position, the camera will enter into the ON (Live) mode. The motion indicator LED (pg. 5, “Front View”) will blink red for about 10 seconds. This interval allows time for you to close the Trophy Cam’s front cover, lock it, and leave the monitored area. Once in the ON mode, no manual controls are needed or possible (the control keys have no effect). The Trophy Cam will take photos or

videos automatically (according to its current parameter settings) when it is triggered by the PIR sensor’s detection of activity in the area it covers. You can either move the power switch directly from OFF to ON mode, or stop at the SETUP position ﬁrst to change one or more settings, then move the switch to ON after you have ﬁnished doing so.

SETUP MODE

In the SETUP mode you can check and change the settings of the Trophy Cam with the help of its built-in LCD (or a monitor connected to the TV out

jack). These settings, found in the SETUP Menu, let you change the photo or video resolution, interval between photos, switch the time imprint on, etc. Moving the power switch to the SETUP position will turn on the LCD display, and you will see an information screen that shows how many images have been taken, the battery level, camera or video mode, etc (see Fig. 3, pg. 10).

NOTE: Always move the power switch from OFF to SETUP mode. It is possible that the camera could lockup if it is switched from ON to SETUP mode. If this occurs, simply move the switch to OFF and then push it up to SETUP again.

SETUP Mode Shortcut Keys/Functions

As mentioned earlier in “Parts & Controls”, four of the keys below the LCD have secondary, “shortcut” functions when the camera is switched to SETUP mode (but the MENU key has not been pressed):

• Press the UP key to quickly set the camera to shoot video clips.

• Press the DOWN key to quickly set the camera to take still photos.

• Press the RIGHT key to manually trigger the shutter. This is useful for testing the camera-make sure you are in SETUP mode, press the RIGHT key, and a few seconds later a photo or video (depending on how the camera was set) will be saved to the SD card (or internal memory if no card is inserted). The “number of images taken” counter on the bottom left of the LCD will increase by one. If the display indicates “SD PROTECTED” when you press the SHOT key, switch the camera OFF, remove the SD card and slide its protect switch off.

• Press the OK key to replay (review or playback) photos/videos on a connected TV monitor. See “Playing Back Photos/Videos” for more details.

Fig. 3: SETUP Information Screen

Camera (Still Photo) Mode

Still Photo Mode

Time Stamp

Field Scan On

Video Mode

Image Size (Resolution)

SD Card Status

# of Photos Taken Remaining Photo Capacity

Video Sound On

Video Resolution

Available Video Recording Time

Battery Level

Date:Month-Day-Year

Time Hour:Minute:Second

USING THE SETUP MENU TO CHANGE SETTINGS

The main purpose of the SETUP mode is to allow you to change the settings of the camera’s parameters (14 different ones are available) so your Trophy Cam operates exactly the way you want it to. You will do this by entering the SETUP Menu and pressing the keys below the LCD display, which will show you each parameter and its setting.

Changing Parameter Settings in SETUP Mode

A wide range of options or “parameters” are provided to allow you to set the Trophy Cam to your operational preferences. To change the setting of any parameter you must ﬁrst switch to the SETUP mode. Once in SETUP mode, pressing the MENU button will allow you to select any parameter and change its setting. The name of the parameter and its current setting will be shown on the LCD. Pressing the RIGHT or LEFT key scrolls to the next or previous parameter (RIGHT key to move on to the next parameter and LEFT key to go back to the previous parameter), and pressing the UP or DOWN key lets you select a different setting for the currently displayed parameter. Once you have selected your preferred new setting for a parameter, press the OK button to save the new setting (actually change it). When have are ﬁnished changing the settings of one or more parameters, press MENU again to exit the SETUP menu. MENU can also be pressed anytime you want to cancel changing a parameter’s setting after a new setting has been selected (but OK has not been pressed yet). After setting the parameters to your preferences, be sure to move the switch to ON to begin actually taking photos or videos. No images will be captured if the switch is left in the SETUP position (unless you press the RIGHT/Shot key after exiting the menu)in fact, the camera will power off automatically after a few seconds with no key pressed.

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