My wife told me to stop taking pictures of "those stupid T-posts" today so I guess my highly scientific test is over...at least for a while. Anyway, if anyone is interested in PC800 flash distances, here's what I have found so far.

The first photo shows the setup. The camera, which is set on Night Mode/Max Range, is pointing down a slight hill and is mounted on a tree about 2 1/2 to 3 feet high. The first T-post is 25' from the camera, the second is 50', and the third is 75'. The trunk of the small pine tree in the center of the frame is 84' from the camera.

I adjusted its pointing angle from high to low in several steps and you can see the effect of pointing too high or low in the photos. Small angle changes can be significant but if you're not too far off the optimum (10 to 15 degrees maybe) you will come close to max range. I've also included two photos with deer just to show the PC800 can take photos of animals when called on to do so. Reconyx's advertisement of 70' max flash distance for the camera seems reasonable and it may go out a bit farther than that. At least it's in the ballpark. Later I plan to check all of the night modes to see their effect on flash distance.

Hope I didn't bore you all too much but I needed a project!

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Jim
RC60HO
PC800

Yes you can see if angled to low or high it causes the flash to fall short or loses its distance of its advertised flash distance and small movements makes a huge difference but i think this is true with all cams. what do you think that is in the tree on the left side of picture about 8-10 feet in the air on the tree limb i would think its some type of bird you can see the eyes glowing..

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1 Ltl Acorn 5210A
1 Bushnell 467
4 Bushnell 466 / Uway BlkExtenders
2 Primos TC60 Blackouts
2 Covert Black 60 MMS / Uway BlkExtenders

Rocky,

I'm pretty sure that's my neighbor's porch light. The house is probably 1,200' or so from the camera. My wife also thought it was a creature initially but it's at the same place consistently.

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Jim
RC60HO
PC800

Good post.
For anyone new to trail cameras, this type of "yard test" is a good idea with any camera. Learn the limitations of what you are working with. It may save you a lot of time and trouble. I've noticed every so often people coming on here posting how bad their new camera is and some times it may just be user error.

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1 Spypoint 2012 BF-7
1 Reconyx 2011 HC 600
2 Moultrie 2011 M-80


1 WGI IR-4 ( dead )
2 Stealth 1540 ( dead )

yes good post...good set up on the T post

Thanks for this solid research, I wish chasingame would do a similar test on the hc500 and 600

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(1) Browning Recon Force
(1) Reconyx RC55
(1) SG560 Long Range
(1) Plotwatcher Pro + Lens Upgrade + power panel
(1) Moultrie Plotstalker + 12V SLA