29/11/2025
Happy guys!
Photo 1 & 2 are of a female and male jaguar taken with a DSLR camera trap in Peruās Amazon rainforest, photo 3 is me posing as a jaguar to test camera trap settings, photo 6 is a drawing I did as a 6 year old, jaguar obsessed boyā¦
All photos taken with sensor, housing and triggers, Nikon sb28 flashes and a nikon d7200 + lots of tape and Tupperware boxes.
FULL STORY BELOW AND IN COMMENTS
As many of you know, I have a guilty pleasure for jaguars. So many people do and to be fair, how could you not?
Iāve been to the Peruvian Amazon rainforest three times, living there for over a year cumulatively in the field, but Iāve never actually seen a jaguar. Iāve had many near misses and sensed their presence everywhere, including seeing fresh jaguar faeces, fresh prints and claw marks on trees. I donāt mind not having seen one yet, it only makes me love them more. They keep appearing in my dreams, which is always a nice feeling, but Iāve always wanted to capture one on a camera trap.
On my first trip, I took a terrible black-and-white, blurry photo of one with an off-the-shelf camera trap, and the obsession was triggered. I now wanted a jaguar to trigger an upgraded camera trap system so I could get a nicer photo. So on my second trip, I brought a DSLR camera-trap setup with me, and by chance, within two months, I managed to get a shot of one. But the photo wasnāt sharp and had lots of issues that needed improving.Ā
A DSLR camera trap consists of a DSLR camera inside protective housing (to protect it from rain, humidity, termites, and ants), a sensor, and flashes to illuminate the scene. The camera is then positioned in the field where you think your target animal might walk past. So if an animal walks past the sensor, it detects the movement and sends a signal to the flashes and camera, triggering them simultaneously.
On my third trip, I stayed in the jungle for eight months. With more practice and time under my belt, I had my best chance of getting that crisp shot Iād been chasing.
But a couple months in and disaster struck! An Amazonian flash flood had submerged my entire systemā¦
STORY CONTINUED IN COMMENTS
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