The folks at Yamaha Outdoors say bowhunters should prepare now for the bow season, as it could take several months to get your gear and yourself in shape.

To get started, the following three "Ps" of bowhunting is a checklist of sorts to prevent poor performance. Of course for those who religiously participate in weekly 3D shoots, this advice is common practice. But if you don't shoot regularly, here are the three Ps for consideration.

1. Preventive Maintenance – Go through your bow from axle to axle to ensure everything is in proper working order. Check all fastenings for tightness as a bow absorbs lots of shock and vibration over the course of a year. All of which can loosen screws and bolts. Check strings and cables for wear. Most manufacturer's recommend you replace your string at least every two-three years; some advise annually. Obviously, it depends on how much use, abuse and wear it gets. But it's a relatively small investment to ensure proper performance. After that, lubricate all moving parts with bow oil or some odor-free lube. And if your current string is ok, wax it.

2. Practice – Prepare your body and bow for the upcoming season. Shoot enough so that the mechanics of drawing and shooting become second nature. Practice in situations that replicate the actual conditions you hunt in like elevated stands, ground blinds or long-distance shooting provided you're pulling enough pounds to effectively reach those distances.

3. Prepare Your Paraphernalia – Check arrow shafts and nocks for cracks or defects. Make sure vanes are securely attached and not torn and that broadheads are sharp. And if you transport your bow in the bed of a pickup, it may be a good idea to buy a sturdy bow case.

Going back to the equipment area, if you don't have the time or inclination to do bow maintenance, take it to a professional bow shop and have them do it.

Rick Weaknecht of Weaknecht Archery in Kutztown, who does bow maintenance says, "You won't believe some of the bows that come in for service. Some are five inches off sight-wise and the owners never knew it. Oftentimes the cable slides are badly worn, the string loops are shot and most all need serious lubrication," said Weaknecht.

As for practicing in hunting conditions, some hunters take a 3D target into the woods and shoot it from their stand. If you have to hike to get to your stand a lighter, more manageable target like a small foam cube, bag target or even lighter and thinner Blueridge foam bull's-eye target that measures a mere 26x22x2-inches thick. It has two metal vertical rods for securing in place.

And for those who employ a game camera before the season, Moultrie has recently introduced a unique and ground breaking panoramic two-mode (Panoramic and Single) 8.0 MP camera that has a moving lens. When sensing movement, the lens silently scans and photographs to a superwide 150-degrees, or three times the area of a regular game camera.

In Panoramic Mode, the camera does this by capturing three photos from each 50-degree zone, then combines them into a single 48:9 image. In Single Mode, the camera can capture individual 16:9 widescreen photos and video when motion is detected.

And get this, Moultrie's Illumi-Night sensor uses a low glow infrared flash that reaches out to an amazing 100 feet at night. Most cameras only go to 60 feet or less. And the built in Motion Freeze reduces nighttime blur that leaves no question on how many points are on the buck in the photo. All this plus it captures 720p high definition video making it a three camera system.

The Panoramic 150 can record up to 9,000 images on a single set of 6 C-cell batteries and can accommodate up to a 32GB SD photo card. It retails for $219.99 at Bass Pro Shops in Harrisburg or online.