
- USB 2.0 DIGITAL PHOTO KEYCHAIN SOFTWARE DOWNLOAD CODE
- USB 2.0 DIGITAL PHOTO KEYCHAIN SOFTWARE DOWNLOAD FREE
(I figured there'd be more demand for doing it via Arduino.)

If you're interested in learning that technique for some reason, let me know - if there's enough interest I'll whip up another Instructable. *My research actually has me controlling this camera via a stand-alone ATMega chip. Very nice for many projects (but not necessary for all.) But if you want a camera today, head to any Rite-Aid, CVS, etc and pick up the camera shown here - a Digital Concepts camera, usually distributed by Sakar international. *If you are outside the US or willing to order directly from CatCam, the hackable camera they sell is of a higher quality - 1 or 2 Megapixel - and can save photos directly to an SD card.
USB 2.0 DIGITAL PHOTO KEYCHAIN SOFTWARE DOWNLOAD FREE
I discovered the CatCam as this project wrapped up, and both techniques were developed independently - so my technique likely varies from the CatCam technique feel free to pick and choose techniques from the two. The CatCam's technique uses a camera that's not easily available in the United States, and was written before Arduino really took off - hopefully this revisiting of the technique will help the DIY community rediscover and repurpose it in their projects. *If this technique sounds familiar, it might be because what we're doing to the camera itself is very similar to the technique used by the CatCam, a project that went viral two years ago by putting small, time-lapse cameras on the collars of outdoor cats and watching where they go. This same camera is sold across the country in different colors, under different brand names and even with slightly different physical casings. Don't fret, the internals of both cameras are the same (I'm working with both at the moment for research.). *The camera being hacked may change from blue to silver and back in the photos.
USB 2.0 DIGITAL PHOTO KEYCHAIN SOFTWARE DOWNLOAD CODE
It'll also have sample code and plenty of pretty pictures.

It will then walk you through wiring a simple set of transistor switch circuits that can be used by Arduino to turn the camera off and on and snap photos whenever your program desires. This Instructable will walk you through the process of disassembling, modifying and reassembling an off-the-shelf keychain camera. You can also do this same hack with a cheap 1 or 2 megapixel camera that takes SD cards if needed (see below), but we'll be stepping through the process used on the more commonly found 300 by 200 cameras. The photography on them isn't half bad with a resolution of about 300 by 200, they can store between 20 and 240 photos (depending on the one you find), and it turns out the little guys were just made to be hacked.

It's those chintzy little keychain cameras that they sell for $10-15 a pop. Turns out there is at least one - and they sell it at your local drug store (CVS/Rite-Aid/Walgreens/etc.) Why isn't there a normal, cheap, run of the mill digital camera that's controllable by Arduino?

And current techniques for stand-alone Arduino photography typically try to capture raw image data from CMOS cameras popped off of cell phones.and believe me, unless you need to digitally upload or alter those photos in real time, you don't want to go down that road. Webcams aren't practical for applications like kite photography or public photography, unless you feel like buying a 200 foot USB cable. Photography options for the Arduino are few and far between.
