But the hacking kit works only with Canon cameras, one of the most popular brands. Apparently, no such extensive project exists for hacking the software that runs Nikon, Sony, Panasonic or other popular cameras.

The Canon hack kit is good at setting up a camera to perform simple, repetitive tasks.

Julien Quénard, an amateur photographer and bird watcher in Arrest, France, programmed his Canon PowerShot A540 to constantly watch for birds, modifying a motion-detection script originally written by a developer who referred to himself among fellow camera hackers only as Fudgey. When the birds move into the frame, the camera quickly focuses and then takes a sequence of four pictures. He keeps the camera pointed at the bird feeder, but he has also found that the redstarts and flycatchers like one particular section of his garden. Mr. Quénard’s version uses the fastest shutter speed possible because the birds move quickly, and uses macro mode for close focus.

The camera’s new software leaves some tasks for him, however. “Each time, there are a few good pictures and hundreds for the trash,” he said. “I also need to crop most pictures for better framing.”

The C.H.D.K. developers pool their resources at chdk.wikia.com, a Web site that collects software contributions and shares the packages with other users. Any photographer can download software files free under an open-source license and copy it onto a flash memory card that normally holds photographs. The site offers a “C.H.D.K. for Dummies” page with step-by-step instructions for loading the software into the camera. The C.H.D.K. software loads itself into the camera by taking advantage of the updating mechanism normally used by the manufacturer to install new software with bug fixes or new features. When a Canon camera is first turned on, the camera scans the flash memory card for updates to the camera’s software, often called firmware. The C.H.D.K. software is made to be temporary, though, and it can be removed by turning off the camera and deleting these files from the flash card. The C.H.D.K. Web site warns that something may go wrong in the process, potentially voiding the warranty, but several developers say there are no documented cases that it has ever happened.