"Mastering the Science & Art of Effective Camouflage"
Camouflage is an interesting and fascinating subject. Sure to evoke opinion from the elusive hunter and raise pointed questions by the outdoorsman that has successfully harvested game wearing a plaid flannel shirt and jeans, brown duk overalls or standard issue military surplus. Camouflage, by definition, is the art of making one inconspicuous amongst their surroundings whether it be in the thick, lush green vegetation of spring green-up, tan cattails of the duck marsh, sun bleached western prairie grasses, a fresh blanket of snow or hidden in the shadows of dawn and dusk.
The most diverse camouflage will enable one to blend in with their natural surroundings independent of geographical location. However, camouflage or more importantly, effective camouflage is more than sticks and leaves or an artist's rendition of nature. In order for a camouflage pattern to be truly effective and work to your advantage thus increasing your ability to get closer to game animals, your choice of camouflage must obey certain principles of concealment and laws of physics.
Currently, there is a host of camouflage designs on the market that aesthetically appeal not only to the outdoorsman and casual hunter but the suburbanite as well. All camouflage is not created equal. As hunters and conservationists, we must not fall prey to savvy marketing techniques but rather make an informed decision based on scientific principles as it relates to the art of concealment and physical deception.
The Science
When it comes to science I'm hopelessly committed. If I am good at only one thing it is separating marketing poppycock from science. Marketing is what often drives sales but… is the story accurate or is some slick marketer trying so separate me from my hard earned dollars?
Before we examine the desirable qualities of effective hunting camouflage, we must first understand certain principles as they relate to perception of our environment as humans and ultimately our quarry. These tenets are based upon brain physiology or the way our brain processes our environment.
A few terms one must understand to fully appreciate effective camouflage are primary vision, secondary vision, positive space and negative space. These terms and the application of these terms will ultimately determine your ability to be visually unnoticed afield. The untrained outdoorsman begins his day afield with glamorous expectations practicing secondary visual techniques by default usually learned from the host of videos, fireside stories or glamorous field shots observed at the local sportsman's club coupled with his lack of field experience.
Secondary vision is employed when a hunter looks for complete images of subjects he hopes to observe such as a buck standing broadside. He scans an area and perceives his environment based upon preconceived ideas and mental images of what he thinks, believes or hopes he will see. Many times, the novice has missed what is truly present due to his focus on his desired sights. .
Primary vision, on the other hand, is when an individual does not rely on preconceived images of what he should be seeing but is acutely aware of his physical surroundings. Shed hunting is a great example of the contrast between primary vision vs. secondary vision techniques. An individual skilled and accomplished in shed hunting is not looking for that typical main beam of the shed but rather has trained himself to pick-up on partial objects associated with antlers or irregular patterns of nature.
Another practical example of primary vision are military snipers. They search for nuances that relate to the object they are seeking. These individuals undergo rigorous training to deprogram themselves from observing their environment with preconceived notions of what they should visualize but rather scanning and looking for that minute disruption of the natural environment.
Positive space vs. negative space: positive space is matter which physically occupies space. More specifically, positive space objects are those items that naturally draw our attention such as trees, large bushes, dark objects, man made objects with definitive lines and angles or out of place structures found in nature and the most alarming to prey, the predatory human being and it's silhouette. Positive space can generally be defined as that which interrupts negative space. Negative space, on the other hand, is that space between positive space objects. Mammals have a tendency to be drawn to positive space objects, not only physically but visually. Next time you are outdoors, scan an area and make a mental note what you are visually drawn to when gathering visual information. Chances are, without conscious thought, you will visually pick up on that which is positive space.
Camouflage Considerations-What Science Works
With this basic knowledge, your desired camouflage pattern should possess the following qualities: A, light in color, base that absorbs yet softly reflects the majority of available surrounding light. The light base color should have a high contrast color superimposed on it, resulting in a large patch appearance to assist in vision disruption.
The large patch appearance is in contrast to the commercial tendency of many small blotches or highly detailed images, dark in nature, which completely blend together at distances greater than 12-15 yards creating an unmistakable outline. The contrasting darker colors should consist of geometrically designed shapes that flow with the natural habitat causing the brain to connect the dots, so to speak, naturally concealing you in your hunting environment.
This configuration shifts you, the human predator, to a negative space entity, in part. By reflecting versus absorbing available light, your camouflage will allow you to become part of the current natural habitat not only by breaking up your outline but allowing you to bear natural shadows and reflect light much the same way the coat of a whitetail magically causes it disappear among sparse vegetation while standing still.
A.S.A.T (All Season All Terrain)
Deer and other game animals have mental images of their natural predators, their lives depend upon it. The number one predator of white-tailed deer in Pennsylvania is man. Therefore, it is critical to your success that your predator outline is broken up or disrupted.
The principles of effective camouflage were first introduced to the commercial market in 1986 with ASAT, All Season All Terrain camouflage. This pattern contains the colors predominately found in nature: black, brown and tan and was unlike any pattern previously created. These colors were and still are configured in a way that is congruent with what is naturally observed in nature yet not drawing attention to the individual wearing the camouflage.
The base color is a yellow-band tan that is one of the few colors that will primarily reflect its environment. The light toned base color has been recognized by the US government in the creation of the newest camouflage worn exclusively at this time by the USMC. It has been acknowledged by the United States government in the development of this new camouflage that it is important for ones camo to be adaptive to its surroundings, taking on a 'color shift' towards its environment by reflecting it. ASAT proved this over 20 years ago.
In addition, the predominant black and green in previously issued US uniforms have actually drawn unwanted attention to the wearer. This observation has resulted in the wearer becoming perceived as positive space or an identifiable object, in essence a natural visual target.
Unfortunately, many commercial camouflages are created to represent that which is positive space, especially those that decorate you specifically as a tree and/or its limbs. This is in stark contrast to the science based ASAT pattern.. Another oversight of many commercial camouflages is the tendency for the schematic of the pattern to blend together or blob out at distances greater than 12-15 yards and use black or green as a predominant color of the pattern. As a result, one again becomes a visual target for approaching game by becoming positive space and unnecessarily attracting attention. This, I believe is impossible with ASAT.
When a camouflage pattern incorporates a negative space perceptive schema and is visually disruptive so that you blend perfectly into your surroundings, you have successfully increased your odds of getting that clean fatal shot to your quarry. If you frequently hear the claim "The animal looked right though me and kept on feeding", you know that camo is doing its job and it's probably ASAT.
Now here is a question you can quietly answer in your own head. Are you wearing a camo pattern because some "TV Hunter" wore it or maybe your buddy has some…or are you wearing camo that is based on science? Are you a cookie- cutter hunter or a predator? asatcamo.com
Dr. Richard T. Fanella
Dr. Rick is a dedicated bowhunter and has pursued Pennsylvania whitetails
since 1985. Rick began working with Whitetail University in 2002.
Rick has participated in Whitetail Universities Video workshop gaining
an intimate perspective on wildlife photography. Fanella has written
for numerous waterfowling magazines and is considered a master dog
trainer.
Rick is a practicing Chiropractor in Indiana, PA and brings a solid
science and medical background to our writing staff. Rick's credentials
include a B.S. in Biology with minor in Biochemistry and special
interest in Mammal Anatomy and Bio-kinetics.
