This will show you how to add a shutter trigger to a Kodak C653 camera to allow automated photography, or use of a remote trigger system.

You will need:

.25mm wire available from hobby/model stores. (I only used one colour, but you will find it extremely useful to use three)

And you are advised to have:

A positionable magnifying glass
A thin-point soldering iron.

As long as you are careful and take your time, this modification is not particularly difficult.

Step 1: Remove the Plastic Body of the Camera

The body of the camera is quite straight forward to remove;

1) Remove the 5 obvious screws from the case.

2) Slide your fingernail gently down the seem of the camera to snap the clips off. The back section of
the camera body will come away.

3) Remove the small metal rod that forms part of the camera strap anchor, and save it for reassembly.

4) Remove the single right side screw, and remove the front section.

Be sure not to accidentally touch the flash capacitor contacts, which will give a nasty shock!

Step 2: Solder the Contacts

You will need to solder wires to three different points on the camera. One wire will will connected to the focus contact, one to the shutter contact, and the third will be connected to ground.

1) Strip and tin each wire, and cut the uninsulated end of the wire down to about 1mm for the focus and shutter wires, and about 5mm for the ground.

2) The focus wire needs to be soldered to the small metal "leg" of the push switch, labelled "1".
This will require quite a steady hand and possibly use of a magnifying glass.
Once the wire has been soldered, use a multimeter to make sure it is not accidentally shorted to ground, and to confirm that it is grounded only when the button is pressed.

3) Repeat step 2 for the shutter wire, which solders onto the leg labelled "4".

4) Now solder the ground wire to the metal bracket at the corner of the camera.

5) Arrange the two trigger wires so that they will be out of the way of the mode selection knob (i.e. as shown), and use a dab of epoxy glue to hold them in place.

Step 3: Arranging the Wires, and Reassembly

1) Pass the wires around the side of the camera, using the same indentation that the blue and white wires use.

2) Replace the front section of the body, and snake the wires around any screw points so that they are tucked into the camera strap anchor.

3) Replace the metal rod, and wrap the wires around it once, to help reduce any pull strain on the wires.

4) Using a craft knife, shave off 2mm from the back camera body section where shown. This will allow space for the wires to pass through.

5) Replace the screw attaching the front of the camera to the internals.

5) Replace the back of the camera, and all screws removed earlier.

Step 4: Finishing Up

Now terminate the wires appropriately for your project. I chose to use a 3-way plug socket, but it may be useful to use a jack socket or similar to allow you to plug commercial remote trigger devices into the camera. Remember to double-check the pin configurations to suit your chosen application.

To operate the focus, short the focus wire to ground. To trigger the shutter, both the focus and the shutter wire need to be grounded.

Enjoy!