JP2008103810A - Photographing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a photographing device capable of preventing illicit photographing without increasing costs. <P>SOLUTION: When photographing sensitivity by a CCD 24 is not less than prescribed sensitivity and instruction information for prohibiting the emission of photographing auxiliary light by a stroboscope 44 is inputted, a CPU 40 performs control for reducing the quality of an image obtained by photographing as compared with other cases. The control includes control for setting focus distance by an AF function to be infinity forcedly, control for setting the focus distance by the AF function to be distance in photographing at close distance forcedly, and control for shifting an exposed state by an AE function from an actual state according to the brightness of a subject. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a photographing apparatus, and more particularly, to a photographing apparatus having a function of emitting photographing auxiliary light toward a subject.

  In recent years, with the increase in resolution of solid-state imaging devices such as CCD (Charge Coupled Device) area sensors and CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) image sensors, digital electronic still cameras, digital video cameras, mobile phones, PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) , Portable information terminals) and other information devices having a photographing function are rapidly increasing. Information devices having the above photographing functions are collectively referred to as a digital camera.

  In addition, such digital cameras and silver halide photographic cameras have built-in strobes to deal with dark subjects and built-in tally lamps to realize autofocus functions. In many cases, it is configured to emit photographing auxiliary light toward the subject.

  By the way, with the recent downsizing and higher sensitivity of imaging devices, the possibility of voyeurism using imaging devices has increased, and in order to deal with this, a function that always sounds a shutter sound during shooting, There is a photographing apparatus equipped with a function of turning off the power when a voyeurism prevention signal issued in the photographing prohibited area is received.

Further, in Patent Document 1, an imaging apparatus that includes an imaging unit such as a CCD camera and has a function for preventing voyeurism, the imaging apparatus has predetermined characteristics generated by the voyeurism prevention information generating apparatus. Disclosed is a technique characterized by having a voyeurism prevention information detection unit that detects voyeurism prevention information from an image signal obtained from a captured image and outputs a voyeurism prevention signal indicating that the voyeurism prevention information has been imaged. ing.
JP 2001-169175 A

  However, in the technique of providing the function for sounding the shutter sound, a speaker capable of sounding the shutter sound is not necessarily indispensable in the photographing apparatus. Therefore, if the speaker is deleted from the apparatus body, the voyeur action There was a problem that it could not be prevented.

  In addition, in the technology for turning off the power when the voyeurism prevention signal is received, an imaging device having a wireless communication function is not common, so when applying the technology to an imaging device that does not have a wireless communication function, There was a problem that a communication function had to be newly added, resulting in an increase in cost.

  Furthermore, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, since it is necessary to newly prepare a voyeurism prevention information generating apparatus, there is a problem that this technique also causes an increase in cost.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a photographing apparatus capable of preventing voyeurism without causing an increase in cost.

  In order to achieve the above object, a photographing apparatus according to claim 1 is provided with a light emitting unit that emits photographing auxiliary light toward a subject, an acquisition unit that acquires photographing sensitivity, and the photographing auxiliary light of the light emitting unit. Compared with the input means for inputting instruction information for prohibiting light emission, and when the photographing sensitivity acquired by the acquisition means is equal to or higher than a predetermined sensitivity and when the instruction information is input by the input means And a control means for performing control for reducing the quality of an image obtained by photographing.

  The photographing apparatus according to claim 1 includes a light emitting unit that emits photographing auxiliary light toward a subject, the photographing sensitivity is obtained by the obtaining unit, and the photographing auxiliary light is emitted by the light emitting unit by the input unit. Instruction information to be prohibited is input.

  Here, in the present invention, when the photographing sensitivity acquired by the acquisition unit is greater than or equal to a predetermined sensitivity by the control unit, and when the instruction information is input by the input unit, compared to other cases. Then, control for reducing the quality of the image obtained by photographing is performed.

  That is, in the case of voyeurism, there are many cases where shooting sensitivity is set high and emission of shooting auxiliary light is prohibited. Therefore, in the present invention, the quality of the image obtained by shooting is forcibly reduced in this case, and as a result, only a low-quality image can be obtained even if voyeurism is performed. So that it can be prevented. Note that the present invention does not require new components such as a wireless communication function and a voyeurism prevention information generating device as in the prior art, and therefore does not increase costs.

  As described above, according to the photographing apparatus of the first aspect, when the photographing sensitivity is equal to or higher than the predetermined sensitivity, and when the instruction information prohibiting the emission of the photographing auxiliary light by the light emitting unit is input, in other cases In comparison, since control is performed to reduce the quality of an image obtained by shooting, voyeurism can be prevented without causing an increase in cost.

  According to the present invention, as in the invention described in claim 2, as the control for reducing the quality of the image, the control unit shifts the focus position from the actual focus position, and the exposure state is set as the subject. It is also possible to perform at least one of the controls for shifting from the actual exposure state according to the brightness. As a result, when performing control for shifting the in-focus position from the actual in-focus position as control for reducing the quality of the image, the captured image can be out of focus, and the quality of the image is reduced. When the control is performed to shift the exposure state from the actual exposure state according to the brightness of the subject, the captured image can be too dark or too bright.

  By the way, not only when voyeur is used, but when shooting sensitivity is set high and shooting auxiliary light emission is prohibited, shooting targets are celestial bodies (stars), night scenes, etc. that have an in-focus distance. There are many cases of infants and animals whose distance is the distance for close-up photography. On the other hand, the distance to the subject when performing voyeurism is often a distance excluding the distance at infinity and close-up shooting.

  Therefore, according to the second aspect of the present invention, as in the third aspect of the present invention, when the control means performs control to shift the in-focus position from the actual in-focus position, the distance to the actual subject. Regardless of the case, control may be performed so that the in-focus distance becomes infinity or a predetermined close-up distance. As a result, it is possible to capture a subject located at a distance at infinity or close-up shooting, and to improve convenience.

  Further, according to the present invention, as in the invention described in claim 4, the control means inputs the instruction information when the photographing sensitivity acquired by the acquisition means is equal to or higher than a predetermined sensitivity and the input means. If not, the light emitting means may be controlled to forcibly emit the photographing auxiliary light at a predetermined timing. As a result, it is possible to easily recognize that voyeurism is being performed on the subject, and as a result, voyeurism can be prevented at a higher level.

  In particular, in the invention described in claim 4, as in the invention described in claim 5, the predetermined timing is assumed to be a timing immediately before shooting, a timing at the time of shooting, or a timing immediately after the shooting. Also good. Thereby, when the predetermined timing is the timing immediately before shooting, it is possible to prevent a voyeurism, and when the predetermined timing is the timing at the time of shooting, The quality of the obtained image can be further reduced, and when the predetermined timing is set as the timing immediately after shooting, as a result of enabling shooting in a short time when shooting is not voyeurism, A situation in which a shutter chance is missed can be avoided.

  Further, in the invention according to claim 4 or 5, when the control means controls the light emitting means to forcibly emit the photographing auxiliary light as in the invention according to claim 6. The light emission may be controlled to continue for a predetermined period. As a result, it is possible to more reliably recognize that voyeurism is being performed on the subject.

  By the way, when a human face is present in the subject, normal shooting is often performed instead of voyeurism.

  Therefore, the present invention further includes a determination unit that determines whether or not the subject includes a human face, as in the seventh aspect of the invention, and the control unit uses the determination unit to determine whether the human face is included. It is good also as what performs the said control only when it determines with not being included. Thereby, in the state which set the imaging sensitivity high for some reason, the said imaging | photography in the case of imaging | photography with respect to the object containing a human face can be performed without trouble.

  Further, in the present invention, as in the invention described in claim 8, the light emitting means may be a strobe. Thus, the present invention can be realized using a strobe generally provided in recent photographing apparatuses.

  According to the present invention, when the photographing sensitivity is equal to or higher than the predetermined sensitivity and the instruction information for prohibiting the emission of the photographing auxiliary light by the light emitting unit is input, the image obtained by photographing is compared with the other cases. Since the control for reducing the quality is performed, it is possible to prevent voyeurism without increasing the cost.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Here, a case where the present invention is applied to a digital electronic still camera (hereinafter referred to as “digital camera”) that captures a still image will be described.

[First Embodiment]
First, an external configuration of the digital camera 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  In front of the digital camera 10, a lens 21 for forming a subject image, a strobe 44 that emits light (shooting auxiliary light) for irradiating the subject at the time of shooting, and a composition of the subject to be shot are determined. And a finder 20 used for the purpose. Further, on the upper surface of the digital camera 10, a release switch (so-called shutter) 56A, a power switch 56B, and a mode changeover switch 56C that are pressed when performing shooting are provided.

  Note that the release switch 56A of the digital camera 10 according to the present embodiment is pressed down to an intermediate position (hereinafter referred to as “half-pressed state”) and to a final pressed position beyond the intermediate position. A two-stage pressing operation of a state (hereinafter referred to as a “fully pressed state”) can be detected.

  In the digital camera 10, the release switch 56A is pressed halfway to activate the AE (Automatic Exposure) function and set the exposure state (shutter speed, aperture state), and then AF (Auto Focus). , Automatic focusing) function is performed to control focusing, and then exposure (photographing) is performed when the button is fully pressed.

  The mode changeover switch 56C is rotated when setting to any one of a shooting mode that is a mode for shooting and a playback mode that is a mode for playing back a subject image on the LCD 38 described later.

  On the other hand, on the back surface of the digital camera 10, an eyepiece of the finder 20, a liquid crystal display (hereinafter referred to as “LCD”) 38 for displaying a photographed subject image, a menu screen, and the like, and a cross cursor switch 56D. And are provided. The cross-cursor switch 56D includes four arrow keys that indicate four moving directions of up, down, left, and right in the display area of the LCD 38.

  Furthermore, on the back of the digital camera 10, a menu switch that is pressed when displaying the menu screen on the LCD 38, a determination switch that is pressed when confirming the operation content up to that point, and the previous operation content are displayed. And a cancel switch that is pressed when canceling.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 2, the configuration of the main part of the electrical system of the digital camera 10 according to the present embodiment will be described.

  The digital camera 10 includes an optical unit 22 including the lens 21 described above, a charge coupled device (hereinafter referred to as “CCD”) 24 disposed behind the optical axis of the lens 21, and an input analog. And an analog signal processing unit 26 that performs various analog signal processing on the signal.

  The digital camera 10 also performs an analog / digital converter (hereinafter referred to as “ADC”) 28 that converts an input analog signal into digital data, and performs various digital signal processing on the input digital data. And a digital signal processing unit 30.

  The digital signal processing unit 30 has a built-in line buffer having a predetermined capacity, and also performs control to directly store the input digital data in a predetermined area of the memory 48 described later.

  The output terminal of the CCD 24 is connected to the input terminal of the analog signal processing unit 26, the output terminal of the analog signal processing unit 26 is connected to the input terminal of the ADC 28, and the output terminal of the ADC 28 is connected to the input terminal of the digital signal processing unit 30. . Accordingly, the analog signal indicating the subject image output from the CCD 24 is subjected to predetermined analog signal processing by the analog signal processing unit 26, converted into digital image data by the ADC 28, and then input to the digital signal processing unit 30.

  On the other hand, the digital camera 10 generates a signal for displaying a subject image, a menu screen or the like on the LCD 38 and supplies the signal to the LCD 38, and a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 40 that controls the operation of the entire digital camera 10. A memory 48 that temporarily stores digital image data obtained by photographing, and a memory interface 46 that controls access to the memory 48 are included.

  Further, the digital camera 10 includes an external memory interface 50 for enabling the portable memory card 52 to be accessed by the digital camera 10, and a compression / decompression processing circuit 54 for performing compression processing and decompression processing on the digital image data. It is configured to include.

  In the digital camera 10 according to the present embodiment, a flash memory is used as the memory 48 and a smart media (Smart Media (registered trademark)) is used as the memory card 52.

  The digital signal processing unit 30, the LCD interface 36, the CPU 40, the memory interface 46, the external memory interface 50, and the compression / decompression processing circuit 54 are connected to each other via a system bus BUS. Therefore, the CPU 40 controls the operation of the digital signal processing unit 30 and the compression / decompression processing circuit 54, displays various information via the LCD interface 36 to the LCD 38, and the memory interface 46 or the external memory interface to the memory 48 and the memory card 52. 50 can be accessed each.

  On the other hand, the digital camera 10 includes a timing generator 32 that mainly generates a timing signal for driving the CCD 24 and supplies the timing signal to the CCD 24, and the driving of the CCD 24 is controlled by the CPU 40 via the timing generator 32.

  Further, the digital camera 10 is provided with a motor drive unit 34, and driving of a focus adjustment motor, a zoom motor, and an aperture drive motor (not shown) provided in the optical unit 22 is also controlled by the CPU 40 via the motor drive unit 34. The

  In other words, the lens 21 according to the present embodiment has a plurality of lenses, is configured as a zoom lens that can change (magnify) the focal length, and includes a lens driving mechanism (not shown). The lens drive mechanism includes the focus adjustment motor, the zoom motor, and the aperture drive motor, and these motors are each driven by a drive signal supplied from the motor drive unit 34 under the control of the CPU 40.

  Further, various switches such as the release switch 56A, the power switch 56B, the mode switch 56C, the cross cursor switch 56D, and the menu switch (generically referred to as “operation unit 56” in the figure) are connected to the CPU 40. The CPU 40 can always grasp the operation state with respect to the operation unit 56.

  In addition, the digital camera 10 includes a charging unit 42 that is interposed between the strobe 44 and the CPU 40 and charges power for causing the strobe 44 to emit light under the control of the CPU 40. Further, the strobe 44 is also connected to the CPU 40, and the light emission of the strobe 44 is controlled by the CPU 40.

  In the digital camera 10 according to the present embodiment, the photographing sensitivity of the CCD 24 is selected from a plurality of predetermined types (in this embodiment, six types of ISO 100, ISO 200, ISO 400, ISO 800, ISO 1600, ISO 3200). The function to set automatically. Here, in the digital camera 10, the shooting sensitivity is set on the menu screen displayed on the LCD 38 by pressing the menu switch. For example, a dedicated switch for setting the shooting sensitivity is provided. Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to this, such as a mode of setting by operating the switch.

  Further, the digital camera 10 according to the present embodiment has a light emission prohibiting function for prohibiting the flash 44 from emitting light. Here, in the digital camera 10, the setting for prohibiting the flash 44 from being emitted is also performed on the menu screen. For example, a dedicated switch for setting the flash state of the flash 44 is provided, and the switch Needless to say, the configuration is not limited to this, such as a mode set by operating.

  Next, an overall operation at the time of shooting of the digital camera 10 according to the present embodiment will be briefly described.

  First, the CCD 24 performs imaging through the optical unit 22 and sequentially outputs analog signals for R (red), G (green), and B (blue) indicating the subject image to the analog signal processing unit 26. The analog signal processing unit 26 performs analog signal processing such as correlated double sampling processing on the analog signal input from the CCD 24 and sequentially outputs the analog signal to the ADC 28.

  The ADC 28 converts the R, G, and B analog signals input from the analog signal processing unit 26 into 12-bit R, G, and B signals (digital image data) and sequentially outputs them to the digital signal processing unit 30. To do. The digital signal processing unit 30 accumulates digital image data sequentially input from the ADC 28 in a built-in line buffer and temporarily stores the digital image data directly in a predetermined area of the memory 48.

  The digital image data stored in a predetermined area of the memory 48 is read out by the digital signal processing unit 30 according to the control by the CPU 40, and is subjected to white gain by applying a digital gain for each of R, G, and B according to a predetermined physical quantity. In addition to performing balance adjustment, gamma processing and sharpness processing are performed to generate 8-bit digital image data.

  The digital signal processing unit 30 performs YC signal processing on the generated 8-bit digital image data to generate a luminance signal Y and chroma signals Cr and Cb (hereinafter referred to as “YC signal”), and the YC signal. Are stored in an area different from the predetermined area of the memory 48.

  The LCD 38 is configured to display a moving image (through image) obtained by continuous imaging by the CCD 24 and can be used as a finder. When the LCD 38 is used as a finder, the LCD 38 is generated. The YC signals thus output are sequentially output to the LCD 38 via the LCD interface 36. As a result, a through image is displayed on the LCD 38.

  Here, at the timing when the release switch 56A is half pressed by the user, after the AE function is activated and the exposure state is set as described above, the AF function is activated and the focus control is performed, and then the fully pressed state is continued. The YC signal stored in the memory 48 at that time is compressed in a predetermined compression format (in this embodiment, JPEG format) by the compression / decompression processing circuit 54 and then the external memory interface 50 is To the memory card 52 as an electronic file (image file).

  By the way, the digital camera 10 according to the present embodiment has a higher possibility that voyeurism is performed when a predetermined sensitivity or higher is set as the photographing sensitivity, compared with other cases. It has a voyeurism prevention function that implements various measures.

  Next, the operation of the digital camera 10 when executing the voyeurism prevention function will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing of the shooting processing program executed by the CPU 40 of the digital camera 10 when the shooting mode is set and the release switch 56A is fully pressed. The program is stored in a predetermined area of the memory 48 in advance.

  First, in step 150, shooting sensitivity information indicating the shooting sensitivity set by the user is acquired. In the next step 152, the shooting sensitivity indicated by the acquired shooting sensitivity information is a predetermined sensitivity (ISO 1600 in the present embodiment). It is determined whether or not this is the case, and if a negative determination is made, the process proceeds to step 154 to execute a normal shooting process, and then the main shooting process program is terminated.

  On the other hand, if the determination in step 152 is affirmative, the process proceeds to step 156, and it is determined whether or not the light emission prohibition of the strobe 44 is set. If the determination is affirmative, the process proceeds to step 158. .

  In step 158, a predetermined process is executed to reduce the quality of the image obtained by photographing, and then the process proceeds to step 160. In the photographing processing program according to the present embodiment, the processing executed in step 158 applies processing for forcing the in-focus distance by the AF function to infinity. However, the processing is not limited to this. In addition, processing for forcing the in-focus distance by the AF function to be a distance for close-up shooting, and processing for shifting the exposure state by the AE function from the actual state according to the brightness of the subject (for example, slowing down the shutter speed as much as possible) In addition, other processes such as a process of opening the aperture as much as possible, a process of increasing the shutter speed as much as possible and closing the aperture as much as possible can be applied.

  In the next step 160, a predetermined warning screen is displayed on the LCD 38, and in the next step 162, input of predetermined information is awaited.

  FIG. 4 shows an example of a warning screen displayed on the LCD 38 by the process of step 160 described above. As shown in the figure, in the shooting processing program according to the present embodiment, a message indicating that shooting is performed with the focus out of focus is displayed as the warning screen, and is specified when shooting is performed. A shooting execution button to be performed and a shooting stop button designated when shooting is stopped are displayed. When a warning screen as shown in the figure is displayed, the user of the digital camera 10 uses a cross-cursor switch to execute a shooting execution button when shooting is performed, and a shooting stop button when shooting is stopped. This is specified by an operation using 56D or the like. In response to this, step 162 is affirmative and the process proceeds to step 164.

  In step 164, it is determined whether or not the user has instructed execution of shooting by determining whether or not the button designated by the user on the warning screen is a shooting execution button. On the other hand, the process proceeds to step 174. If the determination is negative, the photographing process program is terminated.

  On the other hand, if a negative determination is made in step 156, the process proceeds to step 166, in which the strobe 44 is set to forcibly emit light at a predetermined timing, and then the process proceeds to step 168. Note that in the shooting processing program according to the present embodiment, the timing at the time of shooting is applied as the above-described predetermined timing. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a mode in which the timing immediately before shooting or the timing immediately after shooting is applied. It can also be.

  In step 168, a predetermined warning screen is displayed on the LCD 38, and in step 170, input of predetermined information is awaited.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of a warning screen displayed on the LCD 38 by the process of step 168 described above. As shown in the figure, in the shooting processing program according to the present embodiment, a message indicating that the flash fires is displayed as the warning screen, and a shooting execution button specified when shooting is performed, A shooting stop button designated when shooting is stopped is displayed. When a warning screen as shown in the figure is displayed, the user of the digital camera 10 uses a cross-cursor switch to execute a shooting execution button when shooting is performed, and a shooting stop button when shooting is stopped. This is specified by an operation using 56D or the like. Accordingly, step 170 is affirmative and the process proceeds to step 172.

  In step 172, it is determined whether or not the user has instructed execution of shooting by determining whether or not the button designated by the user on the warning screen is a shooting execution button. On the other hand, the process proceeds to step 174. If the determination is negative, the photographing process program is terminated.

  In step 174, the shooting process is performed under the state where the process for reducing the quality of the image obtained by shooting is executed by the above process or the flash 44 is set to be forced to emit light at a predetermined timing. After that, the main photographing processing program is terminated.

  Note that in the shooting processing program according to the present embodiment, a process for forcibly setting the in-focus distance by the AF function to infinity is applied as a process for reducing the quality of the image. When the above is set and light emission by the strobe 44 is prohibited, even when attempting to shoot a subject other than the subject whose focus distance is infinite, the focus is out of focus. Can only be taken. Further, in the shooting processing program according to the present embodiment, when shooting is performed when a predetermined sensitivity or higher is set as the shooting sensitivity and light emission by the strobe 44 is not prohibited, it is determined in advance. Since the strobe light 44 is forcibly emitted at the given timing (in this embodiment, at the time of shooting), it is possible to easily recognize that a voyeur is being performed on the subject.

  As described above in detail, in this embodiment, when the photographing sensitivity is equal to or higher than the predetermined sensitivity, and instruction information prohibiting the emission of the photographing auxiliary light by the light emitting means (here, the strobe 44) is input. Compared to other cases, since control is performed to reduce the quality of an image obtained by shooting, voyeurism can be prevented without causing an increase in cost.

  In the present embodiment, as control for reducing the quality of the image, control for shifting the in-focus position from the actual in-focus position is performed, so that the captured image can be out of focus.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the control for shifting the in-focus position from the actual in-focus position is controlled so that the in-focus distance is infinite regardless of the actual distance to the subject. Therefore, a subject located at a distance where the in-focus position is set to infinity can be photographed satisfactorily, and convenience can be improved.

  Further, in the present embodiment, when the photographing sensitivity is equal to or higher than a predetermined sensitivity, and the emission of the photographing auxiliary light by the light emitting unit is not prohibited, the photographing auxiliary light is forcibly emitted at a predetermined timing. Since the light-emitting means is controlled so as to make it possible to easily recognize that voyeurism is being performed on the subject, it is possible to prevent voyeurism at a higher level.

  In particular, in the present embodiment, since the predetermined timing is the timing at the time of shooting, the quality of the image obtained by shooting can be further reduced.

  Further, in the present embodiment, since a strobe is applied as the light emitting means, the present invention can be realized using a strobe generally provided in recent photographing apparatuses.

  In the present embodiment, the light emission period of the photographing auxiliary light when the light emitting means is controlled to forcibly emit the photographing auxiliary light is not particularly mentioned, but the light emission is performed for a predetermined period ( As an example, it may be controlled to continue for 10 seconds. As a result, it is possible to more reliably recognize that voyeurism is being performed on the subject.

[Second Embodiment]
In the second embodiment, an example in which measures for preventing voyeurism are executed when a subject does not include a human face will be described.

  Note that the configuration of the digital camera 10 according to the second embodiment is the same as that of the digital camera 10 according to the first embodiment (see FIGS. 1 and 2). Omitted. The operation of the digital camera 10 according to the second embodiment is the same as that of the digital camera 10 according to the first embodiment except when the voyeurism prevention function is executed. Is omitted.

  Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 6, an operation when the digital camera 10 according to the second embodiment executes the voyeurism prevention function will be described. FIG. 6 shows a shooting processing program executed by the CPU 40 of the digital camera 10 according to the second embodiment when the shooting mode is set and the release switch 56A is fully pressed. It is a flowchart showing the flow of processing, and the program is stored in a predetermined area of the memory 48 in advance. Further, steps in the flowchart of FIG. 6 that perform the same processing as in FIG. 3 are assigned the same step numbers as in FIG.

  First, in step 100, the digital image data stored in the memory 48 at this time is read, and in the next step 102, processing for detecting a human face image from the subject image indicated by the read digital image data is performed. It is executed using a conventionally known face recognition algorithm, and in the next step 104, it is determined whether or not a human face has been detected by the process of step 102, thereby determining whether or not the face exists in the subject image. If the determination is affirmative, the process proceeds to step 154. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step 150.

  As described above in detail, in the second embodiment, it is possible to achieve the same effect as in the first embodiment, and to determine whether or not the subject includes a human face. Only when it is determined that a human face is not included, a measure for preventing voyeurism (a measure for reducing the quality of an image obtained by shooting or a measure for forcibly emitting light emission means) is executed. Therefore, in the state where the shooting sensitivity is set high for some reason, the shooting can be performed without any trouble when shooting a subject including a human face.

  In each of the above embodiments, the case where the strobe is applied as the light emitting means of the present invention has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a tally for realizing the AF function, etc. Other light emitting means such as a tally lamp in a camera with a built-in lamp may be applied. Also in this case, the same effects as those of the above embodiments can be obtained.

  In addition, the configuration (see FIGS. 1 and 2) of the digital camera 10 according to each of the above embodiments is merely an example, and unnecessary components may be deleted or new within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention. It goes without saying that components can be added and the electrical connection state can be changed.

  Further, the flow of processing of the photographing processing program described in each of the above embodiments (see FIGS. 3 and 6) is also an example, and the processing order of each step can be changed without departing from the gist of the present invention. It goes without saying that processing contents can be changed, unnecessary steps can be deleted, new steps can be added, and the like.

  Further, the display state of the warning screen (see FIGS. 4 and 5) described in the above embodiments is also an example, and it is needless to say that the warning screen can be changed as appropriate without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  Further, in each of the above embodiments, the case where the present invention is applied to a digital electronic still camera has been described. However, the present invention is an information device having a photographing function such as a PDA, a mobile phone, a silver halide photographic camera, or the like. Needless to say, it can be applied to anything.

It is an external view which shows the external appearance of the digital camera which concerns on embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the principal part structure of the electric system of the digital camera which concerns on embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process of the imaging | photography processing program which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is the schematic which shows an example of the display state of the warning screen (the 1) which concerns on embodiment. It is the schematic which shows an example of the display state of the warning screen (the 2) which concerns on embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process of the imaging | photography processing program which concerns on 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

10 Digital camera 24 CCD
40 CPU (acquisition means, control means, determination means)
44 Strobe (light emission means)
56 Operation unit (input means)

Claims (8)

A light emitting means for emitting photographing auxiliary light toward the subject;
Acquisition means for acquiring photographing sensitivity;
Input means for inputting instruction information for prohibiting the emission of the photographing auxiliary light by the light emitting means;
When the shooting sensitivity acquired by the acquisition unit is equal to or higher than a predetermined sensitivity and the instruction information is input by the input unit, the quality of an image obtained by shooting is reduced as compared with other cases. Control means for controlling;
An imaging device with The control means is at least one of control for shifting the in-focus position from the actual in-focus position and control for shifting the exposure state from the actual exposure state in accordance with the brightness of the subject as control for reducing the quality of the image. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein control is performed. When the control means performs control to shift the in-focus position from the actual in-focus position, the in-focus distance is infinite regardless of the actual distance to the subject, or during predetermined close-up shooting The imaging device according to claim 2, wherein the control is performed so that the distance becomes. The control means forces the photographing auxiliary light at a predetermined timing when the photographing sensitivity acquired by the acquiring means is equal to or higher than a predetermined sensitivity and when the instruction information is not input by the input means. The photographing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the light emitting unit is controlled so as to emit light automatically. The photographing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined timing is a timing immediately before photographing, a timing at photographing, or a timing immediately after photographing. The imaging apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the control unit controls the light emission to continue for a predetermined period when the light emission unit is controlled to forcibly emit the imaging auxiliary light. A determination means for determining whether or not the subject includes a human face;
The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit performs the control only when the determination unit determines that a human face is not included. The photographing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the light emitting unit is a strobe.

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