JP5375373B2 - camera - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a camera capable of still image shooting and moving image shooting.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a camera capable of taking a still image has an AE lock button for fixing the exposure state of a subject image picked up by an image pickup unit and an AF lock button for fixing a focus position of a subject image picked up by the image pickup unit. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).
With regard to these lock buttons, when shooting a still image, the exposure state or focus position is fixed while the lock button is pressed, and the exposure state or focus position is fixed when the lock button is pressed, and then pressed again. Some of them can be set to release the lock.

JP-A-8-184874

  However, in a camera capable of still image shooting and moving image shooting, if the settings when shooting a still image are applied as they are during moving image shooting, the operability may be poor.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a camera with improved operability.

The present invention solves the above problems by the following means .

The camera according to claim 1, which can be fixed and automatic exposure control means to automatically adjust the exposure status of the subject image by the imaging unit, an exposure state in which thus obtained the automatic exposure control hand stage a first lock button, against the first lock button in the pressing of the first lock button is maintained by fixing the exposure condition, the exposure state fixed by releasing the pressing of the first lock button When the fixation of the exposed state is started by the first setting (first setting mode) to be released and the pressing of the first lock button, the exposure state is fixed even if the pressing of the first lock button is released. A first setting unit capable of maintaining and selecting one of the second settings (second setting mode) for releasing the fixation of the exposure state by pressing the first lock button again. and Oite to the camera capable of shooting, movie shooting Regardless of the setting of the first setting unit in addition, at the time of moving image shooting, the first said against the locking button the second set is assigned, a camera characterized by.
The camera of claim 2, an automatic focus Asete stage automatically focus the subject image captured by the imaging unit, the automatic focus Asete stage Therefore fixable resulting focal position of the second a lock button, for the second lock button, in pressing the second lock button is maintained by fixing the focal position, to release the fixing of the focal position by releasing the pressing of the second lock button When the fixation of the focal position is started by the third setting and the pressing of the second lock button, the fixation of the focal position is maintained even when the pressing of the second lock button is released, and the second lock is again performed. Contact to the fourth set still image photographing and moving image photographing possible camera and a second setting unit can select one of the (second setting mode) to release the fixing of the focal position by pressing the button And
Regardless of the setting of the second setting unit in addition time of still image shooting, in the moving image shooting, the second said for the lock button fourth setting is assigned, a camera characterized by.
The camera according to claim 3 is the camera according to claim 1, comprising automatically and an automatic focus Asete stage focusing the subject image captured by the imaging unit, wherein the first lock button is fixable Thus obtained focal position to said automatic engagement Asete stage, the first setting unit, for the first lock button, the focus position during the pressing of the first lock button When the third setting for releasing the fixation of the focal position by releasing the pressing of the first lock button and the fixing of the focal position by starting the pressing of the first lock button are started. Any of the fourth settings (second setting mode) in which the focus position is fixed even when the lock button is released, and the focus position is released by pressing the first lock button again . it is a selectable, a camera characterized by.
Video camera according to claim 4 is the camera according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the state other than the said shooting movies definitive the camera is obtained by the still image shooting and shooting It includes a through image acquisition mode that only the display without recording a camera characterized by.
The camera according to claim 5 is the camera according to claim 1 or 3, wherein the first lock button, the after movie shooting is finished, the first setting unit in addition time of the still image shooting to return to the set, a camera which is characterized in.
The camera according to claim 6 is the camera according to claim 2, wherein the second lock button, after which the moving image photographing is finished, the setting of the second setting unit in addition time of the still image shooting to return to, it is a camera which is characterized in.

  According to the present invention, a camera with improved operability can be provided.

It is the schematic of the camera as one Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the control system structure of the camera of this invention. It is a rear view of a camera. It is a flowchart at the time of still image photography. It is a flowchart at the time of video recording. It is a flowchart of AF / AE fixed control concerning operation of AF / AE lock button.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a camera 100 as an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a control system configuration of the camera 100 of the present invention.
In FIG. 1, an XYZ rectangular coordinate system is provided for ease of explanation and understanding. In this coordinate system, the direction toward the left as viewed from the photographer at the position of the camera when the photographer shoots a horizontally long image with the optical axis OA horizontal (hereinafter referred to as a normal position) is defined as the X plus direction. Further, the direction toward the upper side in the normal position is defined as the Y plus direction. Further, the direction toward the subject at the normal position is defined as the Z plus direction.

  The camera 100 is an interchangeable lens digital single-lens reflex camera, and includes a camera body 100a and an imaging lens 10 that can be attached to and detached from the camera body 100a. Although not shown in detail, the camera body 100a includes a camera mount, and the imaging lens 10 includes a lens mount. By coupling the camera mount and the lens mount, the imaging lens 10 is connected to the camera body 100a. Are mounted with their optical axes OA aligned. Thereby, the imaging lens 10 can be attached to and detached from the camera body 100a, and various types of imaging lenses 10 having different focal lengths, functions, and the like can be exchanged and used depending on the subject to be photographed.

The camera 100 has a function of focusing (focusing) by autofocus by using the imaging lens 10 that supports autofocus. In the following description, autofocus is also abbreviated as AF.
The imaging lens 10 includes a diaphragm 11 and a focusing lens group that performs focus adjustment by being moved. In the case of the AF-capable imaging lens 10, the movement of the focusing lens group during AF is performed by a lens driving circuit 226 described later.

  The camera body 100a includes a mirror unit 20 and an imaging unit 30 along the optical axis OA. Further, out of the light incident on the imaging lens 10, a focus detection unit 40 on which light directed downward in the figure by the mirror unit 20 enters, and a finder on which light directed upward in the figure by the mirror unit 20 enters. Part 50.

  The mirror unit 20 is disposed on the exit side of the imaging lens 10 and includes a main mirror 21 and a sub mirror 22. The main mirror 21 reflects the light that has passed through the imaging lens 10 toward the viewfinder unit 50. A part of the main mirror 21 is a half mirror, and transmits a part of the light. Further, when a release button (not shown) is pressed during photographing, the main mirror 21 is retracted to a mirror-up position where the reflecting surface is substantially parallel to the optical axis OA. The sub mirror 22 reflects the light that has passed through the half mirror portion of the main mirror 21 and causes the path to be bent and guided to the focus detection unit 40.

The imaging unit 30 includes a shutter 31, a low-pass filter 32, and an imaging element 33. The shutter speed of the shutter 31 is controlled by a signal from the MCU 200 that performs overall control of the camera 100.
The image sensor 33 converts the subject image formed by the imaging lens 10 into an electrical signal. For example, a CCD or a CMOS sensor.

A substrate 34 is disposed at the rear of the image sensor 33, and an MCU 200 that performs overall control of the camera 100 and various circuits to be described later are disposed on the substrate 34. Further, a rear liquid crystal monitor 35 is disposed on the back side of the photographer side of the camera body 100a.
The focus detection unit 40 includes a focus detection sensor 41. Light that is branched from the main mirror 21 and reflected by the sub-mirror 22 is incident on the focus detection sensor 41.
The viewfinder unit 50 includes a focusing screen 51, a pentaprism 52, and an eyepiece lens 53.

  With the above configuration, the subject light that has passed through the imaging lens 10 is reflected by the main mirror 21 in the Y plus direction in FIG. 1 and once formed on the focusing screen 51. The subject light imaged on the focusing screen 51 passes through the pentaprism 52 and is guided to the finder 54 through the eyepiece lens 53.

Next, the configuration of the camera control system will be described based on the system block diagram shown in FIG.
The MCU 200 is a microcomputer that performs overall control of the camera 100. The MCU 200 includes various functional units (201 to 205) configured by programs. The functional units (201 to 205) will be described in detail later.

The imaging element 33 photoelectrically converts the subject image formed on the imaging surface by the imaging lens 10 and outputs it to the A / D conversion circuit 211.
The image processing control circuit 213 performs gain control on the image data output from the A / D conversion circuit 211 according to various image corrections such as white balance adjustment, sharpness adjustment, and gamma correction, and a command from the gain control unit 212. .
The SDRAM 214 is a memory that temporarily stores data processed in the image processing control circuit 213.

The image recording medium 216 is a memory that can be attached to and detached from the slot of the camera body 100a, such as a compact flash (registered trademark), an SD card, and smart media.
The rear liquid crystal monitor control circuit 217 is a circuit that controls display on the rear liquid crystal monitor 35.
The moving image recording control circuit 218 finally records the same image as the live view in which the image captured by the image sensor 33 is displayed on the rear liquid crystal monitor 35 in real time together with the audio data obtained by the audio control circuit 219 described below. Let
Although not shown, an internal microphone and an internal speaker are connected to the audio control circuit 219, and audio data is formed based on audio input from the internal microphone, and audio is output from the internal speaker based on audio data during video playback. Output.

The photometry circuit 220 is a circuit that performs A / D conversion on the output obtained from a sub-image sensor (not shown) that receives the subject light, and outputs data relating to photometry to the MCU 200.
The exposure control circuit 221 calculates the shutter speed and the aperture value of the imaging lens from the luminance and imaging sensitivity of the subject obtained from the photometry circuit 220 under the control of the exposure control unit 204 in the MCU 200 described later, and the shutter control unit 222. The aperture control unit 223 and the gain control unit 212 are automatically controlled. This automatic exposure control by the exposure control circuit 221 is also abbreviated as AE in the following description.

The lens information input circuit 224 is a circuit to which information such as an open aperture value and a focal length is input by an electrical signal from the imaging lens 10 attached to the camera body 100a.
The focus detection circuit 225 is a circuit that performs A / D conversion on the output obtained from the focus detection line sensor 26 at the bottom of the camera, as shown in FIG. The MCU 200 performs focusing by controlling the lens driving circuit 226 based on the input information from the focus detection circuit 225 and the input information from the lens information input circuit 224.

  The lens driving circuit 226 is a circuit for driving the focusing lens group of the imaging lens 10 to perform an AF operation. The lens driving circuit 226 is controlled by the MCU 200. The MCU 200 performs AF control based on the control information obtained by the lens information input circuit 224 and the focus detection circuit 225.

  The mode setting circuit 227 is a circuit that sets various modes such as exposure, autofocus, and image, and also sets a function mode of an AF / AE lock button 91 on a setting operation member 228 described later.

  The setting operation member 228 is a switch that includes a power switch for performing a setting operation on the camera 100, and outputs an operation signal corresponding to the setting operation to the MCU 200. SW1 is a half-push switch that is linked to the first stroke of the release button, and SW2 is a full-push switch that is linked to the second stroke of the release button. The setting operation member 228 includes an AF / AE lock button 91 (see FIG. 3), a live view button 92 for starting live view (see FIG. 3), and a center button 93M of the multi-selector 93 for starting moving image recording, which will be described later. (See FIG. 3). The AF / AE lock button 91 instructs the fixation of the AF or AE value to the value at the time of pressing, the details of which will be described later, and its function is selected by the mode setting circuit 227.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6 in addition to FIGS. 1 and 2 described above, the operation of the camera 100 when shooting still images and moving images, and autofocus and automatic exposure control by the MCU 200 will be described.
FIG. 3 is a rear view of the camera 100. FIG. 4 is a flowchart at the time of still image shooting. FIG. 5 is a flowchart at the time of moving image shooting. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the operation of the AF / AE lock button 91 and the AF / AE fixing control.

As shown in FIG. 2, the MCU 200 includes functional units such as a still image control unit 201, a moving image control unit 202, a focus control unit 203, an exposure control unit 204, and an AF / AE fixed control unit 205. It has. The still image control unit 201 is a part responsible for still image shooting, and the moving image control unit 202 is a part responsible for moving image shooting.
The focus control unit 203 controls the autofocus control that drives the focusing lens group of the imaging lens 10 via the lens driving circuit 226 to perform the AF operation.

The exposure control unit 204 changes the value of the operation parameter including any of the aperture value, shutter speed, and gain value of the imaging lens, and performs control so that the luminance level of the subject in the image captured by the image sensor 33 is kept constant. .
The AF / AE fixing control unit 205 fixes AF or AE.

  As shown in FIG. 3A, various operation buttons constituting the setting operation member 228 (see FIG. 2) described above are disposed on the back surface of the camera body 100a. Here, the description will focus on AF / AE lock, which is a characteristic part of the present embodiment, and those related to live view and moving image recording.

  A rear liquid crystal monitor 35 is disposed in the center of the back surface of the camera body 100a, and an AF / AE lock button 91, a live view button 92, a multi-selector 93 including a center button 93M, and a menu are provided around it. A button 94 is provided. The live view button 92 is referred to as an LV button 92 in the following description.

The AF / AE lock button 91 is disposed on the upper right side of the rear liquid crystal monitor 35. The AF / AE lock button 91 instructs the AF or AE value to be fixed to the value at the time of pressing by a pressing operation.
There are a plurality of modes (an AF fixed mode, an AE fixed mode, and an AF / AE fixed mode) as an operation function by pressing the AF / AE lock button 91, and any one of them can be set arbitrarily.

The AF fixed mode is used when the composition is changed while being focused on an object.
The AE fixed mode is used, for example, when the photometry mode is set to spot photometry and the exposure is fixed to the luminance of a specific object.
The AF / AE fixed mode performs the AF fixing and the AE fixing.

The AF / AE lock button 91 also has two setting modes (first setting mode and second setting mode) for switching by the pressing operation, and any one of them can be set arbitrarily. Yes.
In the first setting mode, AF / AE fixing is performed while the AF / AE lock button 91 is being pressed (while the pressing operation is continuing).

In the second setting mode, AF / AE lock is performed when the AF / AE lock button 91 is pressed once, and AF / AE lock is released when the AF / AE lock button 91 is pressed again. That is, when the AF / AE lock button 91 is pressed, AF / AE fixing is performed until the AF / AE lock button 91 is pressed again.
The mode setting circuit 227 changes the setting mode of the AF / AE lock button 91.
The AF / AE fixing control by pressing the AF / AE lock button 91 is performed by the AF / AE fixing control unit 205 of the MCU 200 based on the setting by the mode setting circuit 227.

The LV button 92 is disposed on the lower right side of the rear liquid crystal monitor 35, and is assigned a function of starting (ON) a live view when pressed. When the live view is started, as described above, a moving image shooting standby state is set.
The multi-selector 93 is disposed on the right side of the rear liquid crystal monitor 35, and is assigned a function for starting (ON) moving image recording by pressing the center button 93M.
The menu button 94 is arranged on the upper left side of the rear liquid crystal monitor 35 and has a main function of calling an operation menu to the rear liquid crystal monitor 35. However, during live view and moving image recording, the live view and A function for ending (OFF) moving image recording is assigned.

Still image shooting is controlled by the still image control unit 201 of the MCU 200 and performed as shown in the flowchart of FIG.
When the power switch is turned on, the camera enters a shooting standby state and starts AE processing (step 01). In the following description and drawings, “step” is also abbreviated as “S”.

Next, when a half-press operation of the release button (SW1 → ON) is performed (S02, YES), AF control is performed (S03).
When the release button is fully pressed (SW2 → ON) (S04, YES), shooting (still image recording) is performed (S05).
After the photographing is completed, the photographing standby state is continued until the power switch is turned off (S06, YES).

The moving image shooting is controlled by the moving image control unit 202 of the MCU 200 and performed as shown in the flowchart of FIG. As described above, live view is premised on video shooting.
Imaging is started by pressing the LV button 92 (S11), and AE processing is started (S12). For example, when an AF control instruction is given by half-pressing the release switch (S13, Yes), AF control is performed (S14), and an image is displayed on the rear liquid crystal monitor 35 (S15). That is, live view is performed and a standby state for moving image shooting is set. If the release switch is not half-pressed (S13, No), an image is displayed on the rear liquid crystal monitor 35 without performing AF control (S15).

When a recording command is issued by pressing the center button 93M of the multi-selector 93 (S16, YES), shooting (moving image recording) is performed (S17).
Even during moving image recording, AE processing is started (S18). For example, when the release switch is half-pressed (S19, Yes), if the AF control is instructed by half-pressing the release switch as described above (S19, Yes), AF control is performed (S20). If the release switch is not half-pressed (S19, No), shooting (moving image recording) is performed without performing AF control (S22).
The shooting continues until the menu button 94 is pressed (S21, YES).
When the menu button 94 is pressed (S21, YES), the process returns to the standby state.

  Here, the setting mode for the AF / AE lock button 91 described above functions according to the setting of the mode setting circuit 227 in the case of still image shooting or live view display, but in the case of moving image shooting, the mode setting circuit 227. Regardless of the setting, the mode is switched to the second setting mode.

Next, the operation of the AF / AE lock button 91 and the AF / AE fixing control will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. The setting mode is switched by the AF / AE fixing control unit 205 of the MCU 200 by controlling the focusing control unit 203 and the exposure control unit 204.
In the illustrated flowchart, the function displayed as “AF / AE lock” is assumed to be the function set in the AF / AE lock button 91. That is, either AF fixation, AE fixation, or both AF / AE fixation.

As shown in the flowchart of AF / AE fixing control in FIG. 6, when the AF / AE lock button 91 is pressed, it is determined whether or not moving image shooting is in progress (S31).
If it is determined in step 31 that moving image shooting is not in progress (NO), it is determined that the camera is in a still image shooting standby state, and then the setting mode is determined (S32). If it is determined that the first setting mode is selected (S32, YES), AF / AE is fixed (S33). When the pressing operation of the AF / AE lock button 91 is released (S34, YES), the AF / AE is released (S37). That is, the AF / AE is fixed while the AF / AE lock button 91 is being pressed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step 31 that moving image shooting is in progress (YES), AF / AE is fixed (S35) without determining the setting mode (without passing through step 32). When the AF / AE lock button 91 is pressed again (S36, YES), the AF / AE is unlocked (S37). That is, regardless of the setting mode setting, the AF / AE fixing is continued until the AF / AE lock button 91 is pressed again.

  Also, if it is determined in step 32 that the setting mode is not set to the first setting mode (that is, the second setting mode is set), AF / AE is fixed (S35), and AF / AE is set. When the lock button 91 is pressed again (S36, YES), the AF / AE is released (S37).

By such control, during moving image shooting, the setting mode of the AF / AE lock button 91 is switched to the second setting mode regardless of the mode setting. That is, AF / AE is fixed when the AF / AE lock button 91 is pressed, and is released when the AF / AE lock button 91 is pressed again.
Thus, during moving image shooting, it is possible to concentrate on shooting without being bothered by the operation of continuing to press the AF / AE lock button 91. In addition, it is possible to prevent blurring caused by operating the AF / AE lock button 91 during shooting.

As described above, this embodiment has the following effects.
(1) At the time of moving image recording, the setting mode for the AF / AE lock button 91 is switched to the second setting mode regardless of the mode setting. For this reason, when it is desired to fix AF or AE continuously during moving image shooting, it is not necessary to continue to press the AF / AE lock button 91, and there is no need to bother the operation of continuing to press the AF / AE lock button 91. It is possible to concentrate on shooting. In addition, it is possible to prevent blurring caused by operating the AF / AE lock button 91 during shooting.

(Deformation)
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and changes as described below are possible, and these are also within the scope of the present invention.
(1) In the above embodiment, the camera body 100a is configured to switch the function mode of one AF / AE lock button 91 between the AF fixed mode, the AE fixed mode, and the AF / AE fixed mode. However, the AF / AE lock button may be configured separately for each function. That is, as in the camera body 100b shown in FIG. 3B, the AF lock button 91F and the AE lock button 91E may be separately provided in parallel. The reference numerals of other components in the figure are the same as those of the camera body 100a shown in FIG.
In addition, although embodiment and a deformation | transformation form can also be used in combination as appropriate, detailed description is abbreviate | omitted. Further, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above.

  100: camera, 10: photographing lens, 100a: camera body, 200: MCU, 201: still image control unit, 202: moving image control unit, 203: focus control unit, 204: exposure control unit, 205: AF / AE fixed Control unit, 218: moving image recording control circuit, 221: exposure control circuit, 222: shutter control unit, 223: aperture control unit, 225: focus detection circuit, 227: mode setting circuit, 228: setting operation member 228

Claims (6)

And automatic exposure control means for automatically adjusting the exposure state of the subject image captured by the imaging unit,
A first lock button capable of fixing the exposure state obtained by the automatic exposure control means;
A first setting that fixes and maintains the exposed state while the first lock button is pressed with respect to the first lock button, and releases the fixed exposure state by releasing the first lock button. When,
When fixing of the exposed state is started by pressing the first lock button, the exposure state is fixed even if the pressing of the first lock button is released, and the exposure is performed by pressing the first lock button again. A first setting unit capable of selecting one of the second settings for releasing the fixed state ;
In a camera capable of still image shooting and movie shooting with
The camera, wherein the second setting is assigned to the first lock button during moving image shooting regardless of the setting of the first setting unit other than during moving image shooting. And an automatic focusing means automatically focus the subject image captured by the imaging unit,
A second lock button capable of fixing the focal position obtained by the automatic focusing means;
A third setting for fixing and maintaining the focal position while the second lock button is being pressed with respect to the second lock button, and releasing the fixation of the focal position by releasing the second lock button. When the fixation of the focal position is started by pressing the second lock button, the fixation of the focal position is maintained even when the second lock button is released, and the second lock button is pressed again. A second setting unit capable of selecting any of the fourth settings for releasing the fixation of the focal position ;
In a camera that can shoot still images and movies,
Regardless of the setting of the second setting unit in addition time of moving image shooting, in the moving image shooting, a camera, wherein, said fourth set are assigned to the second locking button. The camera according to claim 1,
And an automatic focusing means automatically focus the subject image captured by the imaging unit,
The first lock button can fix the focal position obtained by the automatic focusing means,
The first setting unit fixes and maintains the focal position while the first lock button is pressed with respect to the first lock button, and fixes the focal position by releasing the press of the first lock button. When the focus position is fixed by pressing the first lock button and the third setting for releasing the focus position, the focus position remains fixed even when the first lock button is released, It is possible to select any of the fourth settings for releasing the fixation of the focal position by pressing the first lock button ,
Camera characterized by. The camera according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The camera other than the movie shooting state includes a still image shooting state and a through image shooting state in which the shot movie is only displayed without being recorded,
Camera characterized by. The camera according to claim 1 or 3,
The first lock button returns to the setting of the first setting unit at the time other than the still image shooting after the moving image shooting is finished,
Camera characterized by. The camera according to claim 2,
The second lock button returns to the setting of the second setting unit at the time other than the still image shooting after the moving image shooting is finished,
Camera characterized by.

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