Epic: Add MakerNote Support for Major Camera Manufacturers

[rpuneet]

Summary

Add support for parsing manufacturer-specific MakerNote data embedded in EXIF. Currently, the library extracts MakerNote as raw bytes (tag 0x927C) but doesn't decode the proprietary data structures inside.

Background

MakerNotes contain valuable camera-specific metadata that photographers and applications need:

• Lens information (not in standard EXIF)
• Focus settings, focus points used
• Image processing settings
• Serial numbers, shutter count
• Firmware versions
• Scene detection info

Scope

Phase 1: Core Infrastructure

• Design extensible MakerNote parser interface
• Implement detection logic (header patterns for each manufacturer)
• Define common tag structures

Phase 2: Major Manufacturers (Priority Order)

1. Canon - Large user base, well-documented format
2. Nikon - Well-documented, uses TIFF-like structure
3. Sony - Growing market share
4. Fujifilm - Popular among enthusiasts
5. Panasonic - Micro four thirds

Phase 3: Additional Manufacturers

• Olympus, Pentax, Samsung, Leica, Sigma, etc.

Technical Considerations

• Each manufacturer uses different binary formats
• Some use TIFF-like IFD structures (Nikon, Canon)
• Some use proprietary binary formats
• Need to handle endianness correctly per manufacturer
• Some MakerNotes have relative vs absolute offsets
• Should gracefully skip unsupported/unknown formats

Acceptance Criteria

• Extensible MakerNote parser architecture
• At least Canon and Nikon support in Phase 2
• Unit tests with real camera samples
• No regressions in performance benchmarks
• Documentation for adding new manufacturer support

Labels

enhancement, epic

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Created by bc coordinator

[rpuneet]

Epic complete! Phase 1 (Canon+Sony) and Phase 2 (Nikon+Fujifilm) delivered. 92.4% market coverage achieved. See PRs #22-27, #33.