DigiCam

A Python library for controlling DSLR cameras using the open source program digiCamControl. Please see digicamcontrol.com for more information.

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Table of Contents

1. Getting Started
   • Prerequisites
   • Installation
2. Usage
   • Take a single photo
   • Choose where photos are saved
   • Configure the camera
   • Shoot a sequence
3. API Reference
4. Troubleshooting
5. Contributing
6. License
7. Contact

Getting Started

Prerequisites

DigiCam is a wrapper around digiCamControl's command line interface, so it is Windows only.

1. Download digiCamControl here and select digiCamControl Stable Version.
2. Install it. By default the command line executable lands at:

   C:\Program Files (x86)\digiCamControl\CameraControlCmd.exe
   

3. Connect your camera by USB and confirm digiCamControl sees it. digiCamControl locates the port automatically.

You will pass the path to CameraControlCmd.exe into Camera, so make a note of where yours ended up.

Installation

From PyPI:

pip install DigiCam

Or from source:

git clone https://github.com/jtcass01/DigiCam.git
cd DigiCam
pip install .

Usage

Take a single photo

from DigiCam import Camera

# Replace with the absolute or relative path to your CameraControlCmd executable.
camera_control_cmd_path = 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\digiCamControl\\CameraControlCmd.exe'

camera = Camera(control_cmd_location=camera_control_cmd_path)

camera.capture_single_image(autofocus=True)

Choose where photos are saved

save_folder is created for you if it does not exist. collection_name is prefixed to every filename, and an index is appended so each shot is unique — the example below writes sunset_0.jpg, sunset_1.jpg, and so on.

camera = Camera(control_cmd_location=camera_control_cmd_path,
                image_type='jpg',
                collection_name='sunset',
                save_folder='D:\\photos\\2026-08-11')

camera.capture_single_image()

Supported image_type values are 'jpg'/'jpeg', 'png', 'raw', and '.CR2'. Anything else falls back to .jpg.

Configure the camera

Settings are pushed to the camera by generating a .dccscript and running it. Any setting left as None is not sent, so the camera keeps its current value for that property.

from DigiCam import Camera

camera = Camera(control_cmd_location=camera_control_cmd_path)

settings = Camera.Settings(aperture='2.8',
                           exposure_control='1',
                           shutter_speed='1/125',
                           iso='400')

camera.setup(settings)
camera.capture_single_image()

Values are passed through to digiCamControl verbatim, so they must be values your camera actually supports. iso='AUTO' is accepted by most bodies.

Shoot a sequence

frequency is in images per second, so frequency=0.5 waits two seconds between shots.

# 60 frames, one every two seconds.
camera.capture_multiple_images(image_count=60, frequency=0.5)

API Reference

Camera(control_cmd_location, image_type=None, collection_name='', save_folder=getcwd())

Argument	Type	Description
control_cmd_location	str	Path to CameraControlCmd.exe. Required.
image_type	str | None	'jpg', 'png', 'raw', or '.CR2'. Defaults to .jpg.
collection_name	str	Prefix for every captured filename.
save_folder	str	Directory for captured images. Created if missing.

Method	Description
capture_single_image(autofocus=False)	Captures one image and increments the image index.
capture_multiple_images(image_count, frequency=1.0)	Captures image_count images at frequency images per second.
setup(settings, setup_script_name='setup.dccscript')	Generates a setup script from settings and runs it.
generate_setup_script(settings, setup_script_name)	Writes the .dccscript without running it.
run_script(script_name)	Runs an existing .dccscript.
command_camera(command)	Sends a raw digiCamControl command.

Camera.Settings(aperture=None, exposure_control=None, shutter_speed=None, iso=None)

Holds the camera properties written into a setup script. to_dict() returns them keyed by the property names digiCamControl expects.

Troubleshooting

AssertionError: Unable to locate: ... — the path you passed is not CameraControlCmd.exe. Check under C:\Program Files (x86)\digiCamControl\ and C:\Program Files\digiCamControl\. Note that CameraControlCmd.exe is the command line tool, not CameraControl.exe.

Nothing happens and no image appears — digiCamControl commands fail silently. Run the same command by hand to see its output:

"C:\Program Files (x86)\digiCamControl\CameraControlCmd.exe" /capturenoaf

The camera is not detected — make sure the camera is in a mode that allows tethered capture and is not mounted as a mass storage device. If the digiCamControl GUI is open, try closing it; the GUI and the command line tool can compete for the camera.

Captures fail with autofocus on — a camera that cannot achieve focus refuses the shot. Use capture_single_image(autofocus=False) to capture regardless of focus.

Contributing

Contributions are what make the open source community such an amazing place to learn, inspire, and create. Any contributions you make are greatly appreciated.

1. Fork the Project
2. Create your Feature Branch (git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature)
3. Commit your Changes (git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature')
4. Push to the Branch (git push origin feature/AmazingFeature)
5. Open a Pull Request

Tests that need digiCamControl installed, or a camera connected, are skipped automatically, so the suite passes on a fresh clone:

python -m unittest discover -s test -v

License

Distributed under the GPL-3.0 License. See LICENSE for more information.

Contact

Jacob Taylor Cassady - jacobtaylorcassady@outlook.com

Project Link: https://github.com/jtcass01/DigiCam