JP2007193177A - Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To take photographs without missing a shutter chance, by temporarily altering a function relating to photographing. <P>SOLUTION: A shutter button for starting a photographing operation by pressing operation is allowed to be operated (slid) in a direction different from the direction of pressing. The function relating to photographing is altered when the shutter button is slid. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a camera.

  There is known a camera provided with an operation member to which a photographing condition frequently used by a photographer can be assigned (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior art documents related to the invention of this application include the following.
JP 2002-281352 A

  However, in the above-described conventional camera, it is necessary to perform shooting by simultaneously operating a specific operation member assigned with an arbitrary shooting condition and a shutter button, and the shutter button is pressed while searching for the position of the specific operation member. It will be operated, and the operability is poor and there is a possibility of missing a photo opportunity.

  The shutter button that activates the shooting operation by the pressing operation can be operated (sliding operation) in a direction different from the direction of the pressing operation, and the function related to shooting is changed when the shutter button is slid.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to perform shooting without missing a photo opportunity by temporarily changing functions related to shooting.

  An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a single-lens reflex digital still camera will be described. The present invention can be applied to all types of cameras other than single-lens reflex digital still cameras.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an embodiment, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a camera of the embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a rear view of the camera of the embodiment. Of the operation members and devices equipped in the single-lens reflex digital still camera, illustrations and descriptions of the operation members and devices not directly related to the present invention are omitted.

  In FIG. 2, a shutter button 1 is provided in the upper right part of the camera. The shutter button 1 is half-pressed, that is, a pressing operation up to the first stroke, a full-pressing operation, that is, a pressing operation up to a second stroke longer than the first stroke, and a sliding operation in a direction different from the direction of the pressing operation. (Hereinafter referred to as shutter button slide operation). As the slide operation, an operation of performing only sliding without pressing the shutter button 1, an operation of sliding with the shutter button 1 half-pressed, and an operation of sliding with the shutter button 1 fully pressed are possible. Details of these functions will be described later.

  The shutter button 1 can be slid in any direction, but usually the shutter button 1 is operated with the index finger of the right hand, so it is natural to slide it to the right. In this embodiment, it slides to the right. Shall be allowed to. In addition, a repulsive force is generated by a spring when the shutter button 1 is pressed and slid, and when the shutter button 1 is released, it returns to the original position before the operation.

  In FIG. 3, a menu button 2, a direction key 3, an enter button 4, a monitor 5 and the like are provided on the back of the camera. The menu button 2 is an operation member for causing the monitor 5 to display a menu screen such as shooting conditions and starting the shooting condition setting mode. The direction key 3 is an operation member that moves a cursor to select a menu displayed on the monitor 5. The enter button 4 is an operation member for inputting a menu selected by the direction key 3 to the camera. The monitor 5 is a display that displays a captured image and a menu screen, and an LCD is generally used.

  The configuration of a camera according to an embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The focus detection device 11 detects the focus adjustment state (defocus amount) of the photographing lens 6 (see FIG. 2), and the photometry device 12 detects the photometric value of the subject. The image sensor 13 converts the subject image formed by the photographing lens 6 into an electrical signal and outputs an image signal. The memory card 14 is a storage medium that stores captured images. The lens driving device 15 drives the photographing lens 6 in focus based on the defocus amount detected by the focus detection device 11.

  The shutter button half-press switch 1a is a switch that is turned on when the shutter button 1 is half-pressed. Normally, when the shutter button 1 is pressed halfway and the shutter button half-press switch 1a is turned on, focus detection by the focus detection device 11, focus adjustment by the lens driving device 15, and photometry by the photometry device 12 are performed. The shutter button full-press switch 1b is a switch that is turned on when the shutter button 1 is fully pressed. Normally, when the shutter button 1 is fully pressed and the shutter button full-press switch 1b is turned on, an image is picked up by the image pickup device 13 and the picked-up image is stored in the memory card 14.

  The shutter button slide switch 1c is a switch that is turned on when the shutter button 1 is slid rightward. An arbitrary function can be assigned to the shutter button slide switch 1c. Details of operations and functions of the shutter button 1 and the shutter button switches 1a to 1c will be described later.

  The menu switch 2 a is a switch that is turned on when the menu button 2 is pressed, and the direction key switch 3 a is a switch that outputs a signal corresponding to the up / down / left / right operation directions of the direction key 3. The enter switch 4a is a switch that is turned on when the enter button 4 is pressed.

  The control device 20 includes a CPU 20a, a ROM 20b, a RAM 20c, an A / D converter 20d, and the like, and performs camera sequence control, focus detection calculation, photometry calculation, exposure calculation according to the photometry result, image processing, and the like.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the photographing condition setting program. When the menu switch 2a is turned on by operating the menu button 2, the control device 20 executes this shooting condition setting program. In step 1, it is confirmed whether or not the function setting mode for the shutter button slide operation is selected. If a shooting condition setting mode other than the shutter button slide operation function is selected, the process proceeds to step 2 to execute the selected shooting condition setting process.

  If the shutter button slide operation function setting mode is selected, the process proceeds to step 3, and the function selected by operating the direction key 3 is detected by the direction key switch 3a. In subsequent step 4, the operation of the enter button 4 is confirmed by the enter switch 4a. When the enter button 4 is operated, the function selected in step 3 is set for the shutter button slide operation.

  Here, shooting conditions set for the shutter button slide operation will be described. The shooting conditions that can be set for the shutter button slide operation include (a) single / continuous shooting, (b) ISO sensitivity, (c) metering mode, (d) image quality (compression ratio), and (e) size (resolution). (F) White balance bracketing and the like.

  (a) Single shooting / continuous shooting can be set only when the shutter button is slid when single shooting is set as the shooting condition in advance, and shutter can be set when continuous shooting is set as the shooting condition in advance. Single shooting can be set only during button slide operation. (b) With regard to the ISO sensitivity, for example, if the default value is ISO200, an arbitrary ISO sensitivity such as 400, 800, 1600 can be set only when the shutter button slides.

  (c) In the metering mode, when multi-metering is set in advance as shooting conditions, center-weighted metering can be set only when the shutter button slides, and when multi-metering is set as shooting conditions in advance, shutter button slide operation is possible. Spot metering can be set only at the time, and multi-metering can be set only when the shutter button is slid when center-weighted metering is previously set as a shooting condition. In addition, when center-weighted metering is set in advance, spot metering can be set only when the shutter button slides, and when spot metering is set as a shooting condition in advance, center-weighted metering can be set only when the shutter button slides .

  (d) For the image quality (compression ratio), for example, when the default value is JPEG BASIC, any image quality such as RAW (uncompressed), TIFF, FINE, NORMAL, which is different from the default value only when the shutter button slide operation is set. it can. In (e) size (resolution), for example, when the default value is S size, an M size or L size different from the default value can be set only when the shutter button slides. (f) In white balance bracketing, auto white balance is normally set, but white balance bracketing can be set only when the shutter button slides.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a photographing control program according to an embodiment. When the shutter button half-press switch 1a is turned on by a half-press operation of the shutter button 1, the control device 20 executes this photographing operation. In step 11, it is confirmed whether or not the shutter button 1 slide operation (shutter button slide operation) is performed by the shutter button slide switch 1c, and if the shutter button slide operation is performed, the process proceeds to step 12. In step 12, the preset photographing condition (default value) is changed to a function set for the shutter button slide operation.

  The functions set for the shutter button slide operation include (a) single / continuous shooting, (b) ISO sensitivity, (c) photometry mode, (d) image quality (compression ratio), (e) Size (resolution), (f) White balance bracketing, etc. When the shutter button slide operation is performed with the shutter button 1 released without being pressed, the preset shooting condition is changed to the function set to the shutter button slide operation. Is not executed immediately, but becomes effective and executed simultaneously with half-pressing of the shutter button or full-pressing of the shutter button.

  If it is confirmed in step 13 that the shutter button half-press switch 1a has been pressed, the process proceeds to step 14 where the shutter button slide operation is confirmed again. When the shutter button slide operation is performed, the process proceeds to step 31 in FIG. 6, and when the shutter button slide operation is not performed, the process proceeds to step 15. In step 15, focus detection is performed by the focus detection device 11 and photometry is performed by the photometry device 12. In step 16, the lens driving device 15 adjusts the focus of the photographing lens 6 based on the focus detection result, and calculates the exposure based on the photometry result, thereby controlling the aperture (not shown) and the shutter speed.

  In step 17, focus detection is performed by the focus detection device 11 in order to confirm the focus adjustment result. In subsequent step 18, it is confirmed whether or not the defocus amount of the focus adjustment result is equal to or less than the focus determination reference value. When the photographing lens 6 is not in focus, the process proceeds to step 19, the focus of the photographing lens 6 is adjusted by the lens driving device 15, and then the process returns to step 17.

  On the other hand, when the photographing lens 6 is in focus, the process proceeds to step 20, where it is confirmed whether or not the shutter button 1 is fully pressed by the shutter button full-press switch 1b, and the shutter button 1 is not fully pressed. Advances to step 21 to check whether the half-press of the shutter button 1 is continued. When the shutter button half-pressed state is continued, the process returns to step 20, and when there is no shutter button half-press operation, that is, when the shutter button 1 is released, the execution of the photographing control program is ended.

  When the shutter button is fully pressed after the in-focus state, the process proceeds to step 22 where an image is taken by the image pickup device 13 in accordance with a preset shooting condition (default condition), and the image signal is temporarily stored in the RAM 20c. In step 23 after photographing, it is confirmed whether or not a shutter button slide operation has been performed. If there is no shutter button slide operation, the process proceeds to step 24, and the captured image is displayed in accordance with preset shooting conditions (default conditions) such as single shooting, center-weighted metering, ISO sensitivity 200, image quality BASIC, size S, and auto white balance. Then, in step 25, the image is stored in the memory card 14, and the process is terminated.

  On the other hand, when the shutter button slide operation is performed after the shutter button is fully pressed, the process proceeds to step 26, and the preset photographing condition (default value) is changed to the function set to the shutter button slide operation. Thereafter, the process returns to step 20, and after confirming that the shutter button is fully pressed, the image pickup device 13 picks up images according to the changed shooting conditions in step 22, and temporarily stores them in the RAM 20c. When (c) metering mode is set for the shutter button slide operation, metering is performed again by the metering device 12, exposure calculation is performed based on the new metering result, and photographing is performed again under new exposure control.

  In step 23, the presence or absence of the shutter button slide operation is confirmed. If the operation is continued, the shooting condition is changed to the function set to the shutter button slide operation and the shooting is repeated again. On the other hand, the process proceeds to step 24 where the shutter button slide operation is not performed, the captured image is processed using the function set for the shutter button slide operation, and the image is stored in the memory card 14 in the subsequent step 25, and the process is terminated. To do.

  When the shutter button slide operation is performed after the shutter button is half-pressed, the photographing condition (default value) set in advance in step 31 of FIG. 6 is changed to the function set to the shutter button slide operation. Note that if the shutter button slide operation has already been performed before the shutter button half-press operation, it is not necessary to change it again because the shooting conditions have already been changed.

  In step 32 after changing the photographing conditions, focus detection is performed by the focus detection device 11 and photometry is performed by the photometry device 12. In step 33, the lens driving device 15 adjusts the focus of the photographing lens 6 based on the focus detection result, and also calculates the exposure based on the photometric result, thereby controlling the aperture (not shown) and the shutter speed.

  In step 34, focus detection is performed by the focus detection device 11 in order to confirm the focus adjustment result. In subsequent step 35, it is confirmed whether or not the defocus amount of the focus adjustment result is equal to or less than the focus determination reference value. When the photographing lens 6 is not in focus, the process proceeds to step 36, the focus of the photographing lens 6 is adjusted by the lens driving device 15, and then the process returns to step 34.

  On the other hand, when the photographing lens 6 is in focus, the process proceeds to step 37, where it is confirmed whether or not the shutter button is fully depressed, and when the shutter button is not fully depressed, the process proceeds to step 38 and the shutter is released. Check whether the button half-press operation is continued. When the shutter button half-press operation is continued, the process returns to step 37, and when there is no shutter button half-press operation, that is, when the shutter button 1 is released, the execution of the photographing control program is ended.

  If the shutter button is fully pressed after focusing, the process proceeds to step 39, where the preset shooting condition (default condition) is changed to the function set for the shutter button slide operation, and according to the changed shooting condition. An image is picked up by the image pickup device 13, and an image signal is temporarily stored in the RAM 20c. In step 40 after shooting, the captured image is processed in accordance with the changed shooting condition, and in the subsequent step 41, the image is stored in the memory card 14 and the processing is terminated.

  In the above-described embodiment, when the shutter button slide operation is performed after the shutter button is fully pressed, the shooting condition set in advance after shooting is changed to the function set for the shutter button slide operation, and then again. Although an example of shooting is shown, any of the functions of (d) image quality (compression rate), (e) size (resolution), and (f) white balance bracketing is set for the shutter button slide operation. If it is, the RAW image data at the time of the first shooting stored in the RAM 20c may be subjected to image processing according to the changed shooting conditions without performing shooting again.

  Thus, according to one embodiment, the shutter button that activates the shooting operation by the pressing operation can be slid in a direction different from the direction of the pressing operation, and the function related to shooting is changed when the shutter button is slid. As a result, shooting operations can be activated and shooting conditions can be temporarily changed by operating only the shutter button, improving operability and temporarily changing shooting conditions without missing a photo opportunity. You can take a picture.

  In addition, according to the embodiment, when a slide operation is performed after the shutter button is pressed, shooting is performed with the function after the change after the shooting with the function before the change. After taking a picture so as not to miss the chance, the user can immediately change the shooting condition and take another picture.

  Furthermore, according to an embodiment, when a pressing operation is performed after a shutter button slide operation, shooting is performed with the changed function, so the shooting conditions are temporarily changed without missing a photo opportunity. You can take a picture.

It is a figure which shows the structure of one embodiment. It is a perspective view of the camera of one embodiment. It is a rear view of the camera of one embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the imaging condition setting program of one Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the imaging | photography control program of one Embodiment. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an imaging control program according to an embodiment following FIG. 5.

Explanation of symbols

1 Shutter button 1a Shutter button half-press switch 1b Shutter button full-press switch 1c Shutter button slide switch 13 Image sensor 20 Controller

Claims (9)

  Function change that enables a shutter button that activates a shooting operation by a pressing operation in a direction different from the direction of the pressing operation (hereinafter referred to as a sliding operation), and changes a function related to shooting when the shutter button is operated by the sliding operation. A camera comprising means. The camera of claim 1,
It has a shooting control means for controlling the shooting operation,
When the slide operation is performed after the pressing operation of the shutter button, the photographing control unit performs the photographing with the function before the change by the function changing unit, and then performs the function after the change by the function changing unit. A camera characterized by shooting. The camera according to claim 2,
The camera according to claim 1, wherein when the pressing operation is performed after the sliding operation of the shutter button, the imaging control unit performs imaging with the function after the change by the function changing unit. The camera according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The camera according to claim 1, wherein the change of the photographing function by the function changing means includes a change to continuous shooting. The camera according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Changing the shooting function by the function changing means includes changing to an auto bracketing shooting mode. The camera according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The camera according to claim 1, wherein the change of the photographing function by the function changing means includes a change of a photometry mode. The camera according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The camera according to claim 1, wherein the change of the photographing function by the function changing means includes a change of ISO sensitivity. The camera according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The camera according to claim 1, wherein the change of the photographing function by the function changing means includes a change to a white balance bracketing mode. The camera of any one of Claims 1-3 is a digital still camera which images a to-be-photographed object image with an image pick-up element,
The camera according to claim 1, wherein the change of the photographing function by the function changing means includes a change of image processing.

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