Paul Childerley's Go-To Thermal Imagers - ZEISS DTI

Words by Tom Cackett

If you haven’t seen or heard of Paul Childerley’s enviable hunting, shooting and fishing exploits on the Fieldsports Channel then frankly, I’m worried about your level of commitment to fieldsports!

As well as being a fieldsports celebrity Paul runs a very successful shooting business - Childerley Sporting - primarily based in Bedfordshire, but also extending into the neighbouring counties of Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex and Northamptonshire. Childerley Sporting was originally created to provide some of the best driven shooting opportunities in the Home Counties, but with a burgeoning local deer population, stalking and deer management now also forms a large part of the business.

Planning and population management

As well as the usual Muntjac, Roe and Fallow Paul also manages Chinese Water Deer and sets an annual cull target for himself, informed by hours spent on the ground assessing the local deer population. In recent years, with the advent of thermal imaging technology, it has become even easier to make this assessment and determine a cull plan. A thermal spotter not only allows you to carry out a detailed survey of deer, but also helps you spot deer that you might not have done with a normal pair of binoculars.

“When managing deer populations and setting a cull plan, having an accurate picture of what’s on the ground is incredibly important,” says Paul. “We manage several thousand acres, and thermal imaging has become a useful tool to have in the locker when doing population assessments.”

Thermal Imagers for every scenario

Chatting to Paul, he told me his go-to thermal is the DTI from ZEISS. The DTI range has eight different models that includes a ‘beginner’ model (DTI 1), an all rounder for woodland stalking (DTI 3 Gen 2), a model for the demanding stalker (DTI 4), with its long-range capabilities and high resolutions, and the top of the range DTI 6. The range on the units starts at 930m and goes out to beyond 1,800m which would be plenty for any hunter. 

Battery life is very impressive with 6.5 - 8 hours depending on the model. If battery life is a concern then unlike some other thermals on the market you can remove the battery and replace it with a fresh one! Some of the DTI models also feature a ‘contactless standby mode’ that self activates when the unit is facing downwards or is unused for a period of time.

Regardless of the model you opt for it won’t matter if you’re left or right handed as each unit has been designed with world class ergonomics in mind and can be operated with either hand.

Top of the range thermal

Having had a play with a DTI 6 myself, what I found most impressive was the large scroll wheel at the rear of the unit that allows you to adjust magnification (from 0.1 to 10x) or menu options. The scroll wheel is easy to find and operate, even if you’re wearing gloves, and feels just like the focus wheel on a pair of binoculars so is very instinctive to use. General ergonomics are very impressive and the unit feels well balanced in your hand and is contoured both stylishly and comfortably.

You can tell the DTI 6 has been designed and developed by an optics company - at the front of the unit is a detachable lens that can be swapped out if the situation requires. Each unit is supplied with a choice of two lenses - one for short-range and one for more open-ground hunting scenarios - meaning you don’t have to fork out for expensive upgrades. Regardless of the chosen lens the DTI 6 unit has some very cool modes such as ‘fog’ that alter the settings to give best performance in whatever conditions you find yourself in. There are also the usual settings that we’ve all come to expect from thermal imagers that allow you to change colour palettes, LED configuration and timers.

High tech

Built into the DTI 6 is 16GB of internal memory allowing you to store imagery from memorable hunts or occasions. Transferring data from the DTI 6 is easy thanks to the built in Bluetooth and WiFi, both of which allow seamless connectivity to the ZEISS Hunting App. 

Here you can also adjust the settings if you find that easier than on the unit itself. As an aside, for those of you that haven’t had a play with the ZEISS Hunting App you ought to – it features a ballistics calculator, hunting diary, mapping function for your hunting areas and a weather forecast facility. All of this is accessible regardless of whether you use ZEISS products or not, so is well worth a look!

Thermal scope adaptor

Running a large shooting business Paul is not only responsible for carrying out deer management, but also pest and predator control. For this work, the combination of a DTI 6 handheld spotter and a DTC 3, which clips to the front of an optical riflescope transforming it into a thermal scope, is tough to beat. There is also the latest model, the new DTC 4 which has been launched this month.

Paul added:

On the subject of cost, a DTI 1 thermal will set you back £1,475 compared to the DTI 3 Gen 2, which starts at £1,900, the  DTI 4 at £2,850 and a DTI 6 at £3,500. The DTC 3 clip on 'scope' starts at £3,000. Something both Paul and I agreed on is that you can’t think of a thermal imager as an expensive throw away purchase, but an investment to improve your shooting capabilities. 

Ethics and safe shooting

Paul doesn’t always go deer stalking with a thermal, but says that when carrying out population surveys or guiding clients they are an essential bit of kit. Having used a thermal for a few years now I’m able to think back on the number of occasions I've been able to take a deer that I wouldn’t have otherwise spotted if it wasn’t for the enhanced detection capabilities of thermal technology. 

“Thermal is also a great tool when it comes to deer recovery,” says Paul. “When you are culling the number of deer we are, with clients, there are always going to be mistakes and having thermal in the locker means that whatever happens we can be confident of finding the deer.”

Paul and I are similar in that we both stalk in the home counties where there are plenty of footpaths and even more dog walkers. I’ve frequently found myself feeling more comfortable about taking a shot knowing there aren’t walkers or dogs where they shouldn’t be, thanks to my thermal. I wouldn’t dream of suggesting that stalking without a thermal imager isn’t ethical, but there would certainly be a few more deer I wouldn’t have recovered if it wasn’t for my little unit.

So, if you’re in the market for a new thermal imager, or even your first thermal imager then the DTI range from ZEISS is well worth a look - explore the range here.