JP2019057810A - Imaging apparatus, control method for the same, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To solve the problem in which, if an area where a subject detection process is performed is limited in order to accelerate timing of obtaining an autofocus evaluation value, it is not possible to perform suitable image processing on a subject outside the area.SOLUTION: An imaging apparatus is configured to read out image data of a first area including an area corresponding to an area where an evaluation value for autofocus is generated among effective pixel areas of an imaging device and to calculate an amount of lens drive for auto focus on the basis of the evaluation value for autofocus corresponding to a subject detected from the image data. The imaging apparatus is further configured to read out image data of a second area including an area not included in the first area among the effective pixel areas of the imaging device and perform image processing on the basis of the subject detected from the image data of the second area and the subject detected from the image data of the first area.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to subject detection processing for autofocus and image processing.

  There is known an imaging apparatus that detects a region where a subject exists from image data, calculates an autofocus evaluation value corresponding to the region, and performs focus detection (Patent Document 1).

  In Patent Document 1, a reading area corresponding to a subject area detected from image data is set, and an evaluation value (autofocus evaluation value) for autofocus is calculated using image data read from the reading area. It is disclosed.

JP 2012-58464 A

  In the conventional technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, a subject is detected from image data read from the entire effective pixel area, and a reading area for acquiring an autofocus evaluation value is set accordingly.

  Here, depending on the imaging device, the area where the autofocus evaluation value can be calculated does not cover the entire effective pixel area, and may be limited to a part of the area. In such a configuration, even if a subject is detected from an area where an autofocus evaluation value cannot be calculated, the detection result cannot be reflected in autofocus.

  Therefore, it is conceivable that the detection of the subject is started when the image data has been read from the area where the autofocus evaluation value can be obtained, even before all the image data has been read. By accelerating the start of subject detection, the time until the subject can be detected can be shortened.

  However, if a subject is detected only from a region where an autofocus evaluation value can be obtained, image processing such as color correction and sharpness correction centered on the subject may be performed when the subject exists outside this region. It becomes impossible.

  Accordingly, the present invention provides an imaging apparatus that can perform suitable image processing on a subject that exists outside the region from which the autofocus evaluation value is obtained while suppressing the time required to obtain the autofocus evaluation value for the subject. With the goal.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a reading unit that reads image data from an image sensor, a detection unit that performs a subject detection process for detecting a subject from the image data read by the reading unit, and an autofocus. Generating means for generating an evaluation value for the object, calculation means for calculating a lens driving amount for autofocus based on the evaluation value corresponding to the subject detected by the detecting means, and the detecting means Image processing means for performing image processing based on the detected subject, and the reading means is a part of an effective pixel area of the image sensor, and an evaluation value for the autofocus is After reading out the image data of the first area including the area corresponding to the area to be generated, a part of the effective pixel area of the image sensor And the image data of the second area including the area not included in the first area is read, and the detecting means reads the image data before the reading means finishes reading the image data of the second area. A first subject detection process is performed on the image data in the first area, and after the image data in the second area is read out, the second subject image data in the second area is read out. Detection processing is performed, and the calculation means calculates a driving amount of the lens based on the evaluation value corresponding to the subject detected by the first subject detection processing, and the image processing means The present invention provides an imaging apparatus that performs the image processing based on a subject detected by one subject detection processing and a subject detected by the second subject detection processing.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an imaging apparatus capable of performing suitable image processing on a subject existing outside an area for obtaining an autofocus evaluation value while suppressing the time required to obtain an autofocus evaluation value for the subject. Can do.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an imaging apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a timing chart showing the timing of the photographing process operation in the first embodiment of the present invention. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation of a photographing process in the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a table | surface which shows the to-be-photographed object detection result in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation of still image processing in the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the to-be-photographed object detection range in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the to-be-photographed object detection range in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an imaging apparatus according to the first embodiment.

  The imaging device 100 in the present embodiment is a digital camera. As shown in FIG. 1, a first lens group 101 is disposed at the tip of the imaging optical system, and the first lens group 101 is held so as to be able to advance and retreat in the optical axis direction. The iris / shutter 102 adjusts the aperture diameter to adjust the amount of light at the time of shooting, and also functions as an exposure time adjustment shutter at the time of still image shooting. The diaphragm / shutter 102 and the second lens group 103 integrally move forward and backward in the optical axis direction, and exhibit a zooming function (zoom function) in conjunction with the forward / backward movement of the first lens group 101.

  The third lens group 105 performs focus adjustment by moving back and forth in the optical axis direction. The optical low-pass filter 106 is an optical element for reducing false colors and moire in the captured image. The image sensor 107 includes a two-dimensional CMOS photosensor and a peripheral circuit, and is disposed on the imaging surface of the imaging optical system.

  The zoom actuator 111 rotates a cam cylinder (not shown) to drive the first lens group 101 to the third lens group 105 back and forth in the optical axis direction and perform a zooming operation. The aperture shutter actuator 112 controls the aperture diameter of the aperture / shutter 102 to adjust the amount of photographing light, and controls the exposure time during still image photographing. The focus actuator 114 adjusts the focus by driving the third lens group 105 back and forth in the optical axis direction.

  The illumination means (electronic flash for subject illumination) 115 used at the time of photographing is preferably a flash illumination device using a xenon tube, but an illumination device including LEDs that emit light continuously may be used. Autofocus (hereinafter referred to as AF) auxiliary light means 116 projects an image of a mask having a predetermined aperture pattern onto a subject via a light projection lens, and improves focus detection capability for a dark subject or a low-contrast subject. Let

  The control unit 121 controls various controls in the imaging apparatus 100, and includes a CPU (arithmetic unit), an A / D converter, a D / A converter, a communication interface circuit, and the like (not shown).

  The electronic flash control circuit 122 controls lighting of the illumination unit 115 in synchronization with the photographing operation. The auxiliary light driving circuit 123 controls the lighting of the AF auxiliary light unit 116 in synchronization with the focus detection operation.

  The image sensor drive circuit 124 controls the image capturing operation of the image sensor 107, A / D converts the acquired image signal, and transmits it to the control unit 121. The image processing circuit 125 performs processing such as subject detection, gamma conversion, color interpolation, and compression for detecting an area where the subject exists on the image acquired by the image sensor 107.

  The focus drive circuit 126 controls the focus actuator 114 based on the focus detection result, and adjusts the focus by driving the third lens group 105 back and forth in the optical axis direction. The aperture shutter drive circuit 128 controls the aperture of the aperture / shutter 102 by drivingly controlling the aperture shutter actuator 112. The zoom drive circuit 129 drives the zoom actuator 111 according to the zoom operation by the photographer.

  The display device 131 is configured by, for example, a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display. The display device 131 includes information on the shooting mode of the imaging device 100, a preview image before shooting, a confirmation image after shooting, and a display image of a focused state at the time of focus detection. Etc. are displayed. The operation switch group 132 includes a power switch, a release (shooting trigger) switch, a zoom operation switch, a shooting mode selection switch, and the like. The recording medium 133 is a detachable flash memory or the like, and records an image file acquired by photographing. The memory 134 is a RAM, a ROM, or the like, and stores a predetermined program, holds image data during image processing, parameter data necessary for image processing, and the like. The control unit 121 drives various circuits of the imaging apparatus 100 based on a predetermined program stored in the ROM of the memory 134, and executes a series of operations such as AF, shooting, image processing, and recording.

  Next, continuous shooting in the subject tracking AF mode performed by the imaging apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 is a timing chart showing operation timings in continuous shooting in the subject tracking AF mode in the imaging apparatus according to the present embodiment. In addition, FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation at the time of continuous shooting in the subject tracking AF mode in the imaging apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  The imaging apparatus 100 is based on the premise that the shooting mode is set to the subject tracking AF mode by the user operation of the shooting mode selection switch included in the operation switch group 132.

  In this mode, shooting is started when a release switch included in the operation switch group 132 is turned on, and the process proceeds to step S301.

  In step S301, exposure to the image sensor 107 is started for still image shooting, and charge is accumulated. The still image accumulation 201 in FIG. 2 indicates a period during which exposure and charge accumulation are performed. The exposure time is controlled by the aperture shutter actuator 112.

  In step S302, a process of reading image data from an area including the entire effective pixel area is started. The image sensor driving circuit 124 A / D converts an image signal obtained from the electric charge accumulated in the image sensor 107 to generate image data, and sequentially transmits it to the control unit 121 in units of one pixel or in units of a plurality of pixels. To do. 2 is a period required for reading image data.

  In step S303, the image processing circuit 125 starts subject detection processing. The subject detection 203 in FIG. 2 is a period required for subject detection processing. Here, an area 601 in FIG. 6 to be described later is an area where an AF evaluation value can be calculated. Since the AF evaluation value is not calculated from the image data read after this area 601, the subject detection process is started before the reading of the image data in such an area is completed. Specifically, when reading of the image data from all the areas where the AF evaluation value can be calculated is completed, the image processing circuit 125 starts subject detection processing based on the image signal transmitted to the control unit 121. An arrow 212 described below the still image reading 202 in FIG. 2 indicates a period necessary for reading image data from all areas where AF evaluation values can be calculated.

  FIG. 4 shows the result of the subject detected by the subject detection process. For each detected subject, the position (horizontal direction and vertical direction) and size of the subject and the reliability as a detection result are calculated and arranged in the order of reliability. Reliability is low for subjects that are out of focus, or subjects that are not captured within the angle of view, and can be handled as an index that indicates whether the imaging device is capturing as the main subject. . In the subject detection process, an upper limit may be set for the number of subjects that can be detected. Since the post-processing time increases according to the number of detected subjects, an upper limit is set on the number of subjects that can be detected in consideration of the processing time.

  In step S304, using the subject position information obtained by subject detection processing, the control unit 121 sets an AF readout region partially with respect to the effective pixel region with the subject position as the center. Since the timing of charge accumulation in the next frame is fixed and the AF process needs to be completed before that, there is a restriction on the timing at which the subject detection process can be performed. If the accumulation time is long, it takes a long time to complete reading of image data from all areas where AF evaluation values can be calculated, and therefore the subject detection process may not be completed before the AF process is started. . In such a case, an area detected by subject detection processing obtained from the image data of the immediately preceding frame may be set as the AF readout area. Alternatively, an area determined as a default may be set as the AF readout area.

  In parallel with step S304, image processing for a still image is started. This development flow will be described later.

  In step S305, exposure to the image sensor 107 is started to calculate an AF evaluation value, and charges are accumulated. The AF accumulation 204 in FIG. 2 is a period required for accumulating charges for calculating the AF evaluation value. The exposure time is controlled by the aperture shutter actuator 112. The length of the exposure time only needs to obtain the AF evaluation value, and can be set shorter than when obtaining a still image.

  In step S <b> 306, the image sensor drive circuit 124 A / D converts an image signal obtained from the electric charge accumulated in the image sensor 107 to generate image data, and starts processing to transmit to the control unit 121. The AF readout 205 in FIG. 2 is a period required for readout of image data for generating an AF evaluation value. The image sensor driving circuit 124 controls the image sensor 107 by a driving method different from the readout for still images, and partially reads image data from the effective pixel area of the image sensor 107. Since the image sensor driving circuit 124 reads image data only from the AF reading area, the time required for reading can be significantly shortened compared to reading image data from the entire effective pixel area.

  In step S307, the control unit 121 calculates an AF evaluation value based on the transmitted image data, and the control unit 121 calculates a lens driving amount for focusing on the subject in the next shooting. . The AF evaluation value uses a well-known contrast AF method for calculating the strength of contrast, the integrated value of the signal level of a specific frequency component, and the like. The driving amount calculation 206 in FIG. 2 is a period required for calculating the AF evaluation value.

  In step S308, the control unit 121 controls the focus driving circuit 126 based on the calculated lens driving amount to drive the lens to a position where the subject is focused. This is a period required for the lens drive 207 in FIG. 2 to drive the lens to a position where the subject is in focus.

  In step S309, it is determined whether the release switch included in the operation switch group 132 remains on or off. If it remains on, the process returns to step S301. If it is off, the continuous shooting is stopped and the shooting ends.

  Here, a period during which the subject detection 203 in FIG. 2 can be performed will be described. As described in step S303, the subject detection 203 in FIG. 2 can be started from the timing when reading of the image data from all the areas where the AF evaluation value can be calculated is completed.

  In addition, the subject detection 203 in FIG. 2 sets the lens to a position where the subject is in focus before starting charge accumulation (still image accumulation 221 in FIG. 2) for the next frame, which is determined by the interval of continuous shooting. It is necessary to complete the process to be driven. That is, the object detection 203 in FIG. 2 starts from the timing at which the charge accumulation of the next frame is started to the timing that is back by the period of AF accumulation 204, AF readout 205, drive amount calculation 206, and lens drive 207 in FIG. Is desirable to complete.

  Here, unless the still image reading 203 in the image sensor 107 is completed, the AF accumulation 204 in the image sensor 107 cannot be started. For this reason, at least during the period from the completion of reading of image data from all areas where AF evaluation values can be calculated to the completion of reading of image data from all areas of the effective pixel area, Can be secured as a period. Then, the shorter the accumulation time, that is, the earlier the timing for completing the reading of the image data from all the areas where the AF evaluation value can be calculated, the longer the period allocated for the subject detection 203 can be.

  Next, image processing for a still image performed on captured image data that is started in parallel with step S304 in FIG. 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the image processing operation for a still image.

  In step S501, the control unit 121 determines a range to which subject detection processing is applied for development processing. In the development process, image data suitable for the subject can be generated by changing development parameters based on the photographed subject. For example, when the subject is dark, the parameters of the development process are changed so as to increase the luminance of the subject. When the subject is a person, the face position is detected, and based on the result, the brightness and color of the person are determined, and development parameters are determined so that the person who is the subject is better reflected. However, in step S303 in FIG. 3, the subject detection process is started when the image data is read from the area where the AF evaluation value can be calculated, even before the image data is read from all the effective pixel areas. ing. For this reason, even if the subject exists in an area read after the area where the AF evaluation value can be obtained, it cannot be set as a detection target in the subject detection processing in step S303. Therefore, in step S501, a range to which subject detection processing is applied to detect a subject existing in an area read after an area where an AF evaluation value can be obtained is determined. Note that it is not always necessary that the entire area read after the area where the AF evaluation value can be obtained be the range to which the subject detection process is applied. Even if a subject exists, an area where the importance of the subject existing at that position is considered to be low need not be included in the range to which the subject detection process is applied.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a range to which the subject detection process is applied. The effective pixel area of the image sensor 107 includes an area 601 in which an AF evaluation value can be calculated. As described in step S303 in FIG. 3 described above, subject detection processing for setting an AF readout area is performed at the timing when readout to an area where an AF evaluation value can be calculated is completed. Therefore, subject detection processing for setting the AF readout area is performed at the timing when readout of the image data of the line indicated by the dotted line 602 is completed. The target range of the subject detection process at this time is a region 603 indicated by a diagonal line with a lower left corner.

  The subject detection process for development is performed on the area including the remaining area 604 indicated by the slanting line at the lower right. Since the time required for the subject detection process for development is limited to only a narrow effective pixel region, the time can be significantly reduced as compared with the case where the subject detection processing is performed on the entire effective pixel region. If the time until the subject detection process for development is completed is shortened, the time before the development process is completed is also shortened, which can contribute to the improvement of the number of continuous shots.

  In step S502, subject detection processing for development is performed on the range determined in step S501. The development subject detection 208 in FIG. 2 indicates a period required for subject detection processing for development. Since the subject detection processing in step S303 and step S502 is performed by the same image processing circuit 125, the subject detection processing in step S502 is executed after the subject detection processing in step S303 is completed.

  In step S503, the subject detection result for setting the AF readout area obtained in step S303 and the subject detection result for development obtained in step S502 are integrated to detect the subject for one screen. Generate results. The integration 209 in FIG. 2 indicates a period required for the process of integrating the detection results of the subject. The detection results of the subject are rearranged in order of reliability after being integrated. If the number of detections exceeds the upper limit as a result of the rearrangement, subject information with low reliability may be deleted with the upper limit of detections as an effective detection result.

  In step S504, development parameters are determined based on the integrated subject detection result, and development processing is performed. The still image development processing 210 in FIG. 2 indicates the period required for this development processing. For example, a priority order is set based on the position, size, and reliability of the detected subject, and weighting according to the priority order is performed to perform various image processing such as color correction and sharpness correction. Alternatively, various types of image processing may be performed only on subjects whose reliability is equal to or higher than a threshold. Alternatively, the integrated subject detection result may be stored together with the image data generated by the development process, and the subject detection result may be referred to when this image data is processed later.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, subject detection processing is performed at the time when image data is read from the area for calculating the AF evaluation value, even before image data is read from the entire effective pixel area. Thereby, it is possible to shorten the time required to calculate the AF evaluation value for the subject.

  In addition, the AF readout area is only an area based on the position where the subject is detected among the effective pixel areas of the image sensor. As a result, it is possible to shorten the time required to read the image data for obtaining the AF evaluation value while maintaining the AF accuracy with respect to the subject.

  The subject detection processing necessary for the development processing is limited to a partial region based on a range that has not been performed in subject detection for determining the AF readout region. Then, the processing time can be shortened by integrating the obtained subject detection result with the subject detection result for determining the AF read area.

  As described above, according to the imaging apparatus of the present embodiment, it is possible to perform suitable image processing for a subject existing outside this region while suppressing the time required to calculate the AF evaluation value. .

  In the present embodiment, the AF reading area on the image sensor 107 is determined based on the detection result of the subject obtained in step S303, and charge accumulation for calculating the AF evaluation value is again stored in the image sensor 107. The explanation was given by giving an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention can be applied even when the imaging apparatus is a single-lens reflex camera and a distance measuring sensor is used separately from the imaging element 107. In the case of such an imaging apparatus, the subject detection process in step S303 is started when reading of the image data is completed from the area including the distance measuring point corresponding to the distance measuring sensor. Then, the output of the distance measuring sensor is selected based on the detection result of the subject, and the lens driving amount is calculated.

  Or you may apply this invention to the imaging device provided with the image pick-up element which can obtain the image data which has parallax from each pixel as it describes in Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 2014-146019. In the case of such an imaging apparatus, the subject detection process in step S303 is started when reading of the image data is completed from an area where distance information set according to the pupil distance can be calculated. Then, a pixel may be selected based on the detection result of the subject, and the lens driving amount may be calculated by a phase difference detection method using image data having parallax obtained from the selected pixel.

  As described above, even in the case of an imaging apparatus having another configuration, it is possible to shorten the time required to obtain the AF evaluation value of the area where the subject exists. Then, by performing the still image processing shown in FIG. 5, it is possible to perform suitable image processing even for a subject existing outside the area for calculating the AF evaluation value.

(Second Embodiment)
In the second embodiment, a case will be described in which, in the imaging apparatus described in the first embodiment, a subject straddles a boundary portion of an area 601 where an AF evaluation value can be calculated. Also in the present embodiment, the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 are common to the present embodiment.

  FIG. 7 shows a state in which the subject 701 exists at a position straddling the boundary of the region 601 where the AF evaluation value can be calculated. In FIG. 7A, the subject 701 overlaps the lower end of the region 702 where the subject detection range for determining the AF readout region is performed.

  In the state shown in FIG. 7A, there are a case where the subject 701 is detected with low reliability and a case where the subject 701 is not detected by subject detection processing for determining the AF read area. In the first embodiment, neither the subject detection process in step S303 in FIG. 3 nor the subject detection process in step S502 in FIG. 5 can detect the subject 701 with high reliability.

  On the other hand, in the present embodiment, processing is performed so that the subject 701 in FIG. 7A can be detected as a subject with high reliability. Specifically, in step S501 in FIG. 5, the process in which the control unit 121 determines a range to which the subject detection process is applied for the development process is partly different from the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 7B, the control unit 121 determines a range to which the subject detection process for the development process is applied so as to partially include an area 702 in which the AF evaluation value can be calculated. In step S501 of FIG. 5, for example, a range to which subject detection processing is applied is determined so as to include the number of lines including the maximum size of the subject that can be detected from the bottom line of the image sensor 107. Alternatively, in the subject detection process of step S303 in FIG. 3, if the subject 701 can be detected even if the reliability is low, the subject position and size are estimated from the detection result, and the subject detection process is performed so as to include this. Determine the top line of the range to apply. Accordingly, the subject 701 that overlaps the boundary of the subject detection range in step S303 in FIG. 3 can be included in the subject detection range for development processing, and the reliability of the subject 701 can be correctly determined. .

  In the process of integrating the detection results of the subject in step S503 in FIG. 5, the same subject may be detected in both the subject detection processes in steps S303 and S502. Therefore, it is necessary to determine whether the subject is detected by both, and combine the detection results into one. As a method for determining whether or not they are the same subject, it can be determined that they are the same subject as long as the difference between the detected position and size of the subject is within a preset range. If it is determined that the subject is the same, the detection result with higher reliability may be selected. Alternatively, the subject detection process in step S502 is more likely to include the subject than the subject detection process in step S303, so the result of the subject detection process in step S502 is selected. You may do it.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, it is possible to improve the probability of detecting a subject that only partially covers an area where an AF evaluation value can be calculated. become.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention supplies a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in a computer of the system or apparatus read and execute the program This process can be realized. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 1st lens group 102 Diaphragm combined shutter 103 2nd lens group 105 3rd lens group 107 Image pick-up element 111 Zoom actuator 112 Aperture shutter actuator 114 Focus actuator 121 Control part 124 Image pick-up element drive circuit 125 Image processing circuit 126 Focus drive circuit 132 Operation Switch group

Claims (11)

Reading means for reading image data from the image sensor;
Detection means for performing subject detection processing for detecting a subject from the image data read by the readout means;
Generating means for generating an evaluation value for autofocus;
Calculation means for calculating a lens driving amount for autofocus based on the evaluation value corresponding to the subject detected by the detection means;
Image processing means for performing image processing based on the subject detected by the detection means,
The reading means reads image data of a first area that is a part of an effective pixel area of the image sensor and includes an area corresponding to an area where an evaluation value for autofocus is generated. Reading out image data of a second area that is a part of the effective pixel area of the image sensor and includes an area that is not included in the first area;
The detection means performs a first subject detection process on the image data of the first area before the reading means finishes reading the image data of the second area, and detects the second area. After the image data is read out, a second subject detection process is performed on the image data in the second area,
The calculation means calculates a driving amount of the lens based on the evaluation value corresponding to the subject detected by the first subject detection process,
The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image processing means performs the image processing based on the subject detected by the first subject detection processing and the subject detected by the second subject detection processing.   The image processing means performs the image processing based on a result of integrating the subject detected by the first subject detection processing and the subject detected by the second subject detection processing. The imaging device according to claim 1.   3. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second area is an area that is not included in the first area in the effective pixel area of the imaging element. 4.   The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the second region is a region including a part of the first region. The detecting means is for determining the reliability of the detected object;
If the subject detected by the first subject detection processing and the subject detected by the second subject detection processing are the same subject, the image processing means detects a subject with higher reliability. 5. The imaging apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a result is selected.   If the subject detected by the first subject detection processing and the subject detected by the second subject detection processing are the same subject, the image processing means performs the second subject detection processing. The imaging apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a detection result of the detected subject is selected. The readout means reads out the image data of the region based on the result of the detection processing of the first subject from the image sensor that has accumulated the charge after the readout of the image data of the second region is completed,
The said production | generation means produces | generates the said evaluation value from the image data read from the area | region based on the result of a detection process of the said 1st to-be-photographed object, The any one of Claim 1 thru | or 6 characterized by the above-mentioned. Imaging device.   The calculation unit selects the evaluation value corresponding to the subject detected by the detection unit from the evaluation values generated by the generation unit, and calculates a lens driving amount for autofocus. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image pickup apparatus is characterized.   The imaging according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the executable time of the first subject detection process is determined based on an interval until the next frame is captured. apparatus. Reading image data of a first region that is a part of an effective pixel region of the image sensor and includes a region corresponding to a region where an evaluation value for autofocus is generated;
After the image data of the first area is read out, the image data of the second area that is a part of the effective pixel area of the image sensor and includes an area that is not included in the first area A process of reading
Performing a first subject detection process for detecting a subject on the image data of the first region before finishing reading of the image data of the second region;
Generating an evaluation value for the autofocus;
Calculating a lens driving amount for the autofocus based on the evaluation value corresponding to the subject detected by the first subject detection process;
Performing a second subject detection process on the image data of the second area after the image data of the second area is read;
Performing image processing based on the subject detected by the first subject detection processing and the subject detected by the second subject detection processing;
A method for controlling an imaging apparatus, comprising: A program that can be read and executed by the computer of the imaging apparatus,
The program is
Reading image data of a first area that is a part of an effective pixel area of the image sensor of the imaging device and includes an area corresponding to an area where an evaluation value for autofocus is generated;
After the image data of the first area is read out, the image data of the second area that is a part of the effective pixel area of the image sensor and includes an area that is not included in the first area A step of reading
Performing a first subject detection process for detecting a subject on the image data of the first region before finishing reading of the image data of the second region;
Generating an evaluation value for the autofocus;
Calculating a lens driving amount for the autofocus based on the evaluation value corresponding to the subject detected by the first subject detection process;
Performing a second subject detection process on the image data of the second area after the image data of the second area is read;
Performing image processing based on the subject detected by the first subject detection processing and the subject detected by the second subject detection processing;
The program characterized by having.

Images