JP2008211824A - Digital camera - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a novel technique for presenting various kinds of information on the operations of a digital camera to a user with superior visibility. <P>SOLUTION: During setting for performing a photographing operation to a digital camera, an image being photographed by a CCD 23 is displayed on an image monitor 3 as a slew image. A monitor change-over button belonging to an operation input section 18 issues an instruction to switch a display operation on the image monitor 3. In response to the instruction issued by the monitor change-over button, a CPU 18 switches the slew image to an information display screen representing setting information indicating the setting status of the photographic operation; at the same time, setting for display luminance on the image monitor 3 is reduced to be lower than the setting of when the slew image is displayed on the image monitor 3. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique implemented in a digital camera, and more particularly to a technique for providing a user with information related to the status and operation status of operation settings for a digital camera.

  Many digital cameras are provided with two display units. One of them is a display section called a control panel or the like mainly disposed on the upper surface of the camera casing. The control panel shows setting information indicating the setting state of the shooting operation performed on the digital camera, for example, information such as the image quality of the recorded image data and the flash operation mode, and the current operation state of the digital camera. Status information, for example, information such as the free capacity of a memory card for recording image data and the remaining battery level as a power source is displayed exclusively. Many digital cameras use a monochrome LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) as a control panel, but this has the advantage of a thin and low-cost monochrome LCD and low power consumption. Because it is suitable. However, in many monochrome LCDs used as control panels, the display pattern is fixed in advance, and each pattern can only be displayed or turned off.

  Another display unit provided in many digital cameras is an image display unit that is mainly disposed on the back of the camera housing. The main purpose of this image display unit is to display the image being picked up by the image sensor as a through image, and to reproduce and display the captured image represented by the data recorded on the memory card. A color LCD is used. When compared with the control panel, the image display unit has a larger display size and higher resolution. In addition, the image display unit normally has a built-in backlight so that the display content can be viewed even in a dark place around the digital camera.

  By the way, with the recent improvement in performance of image elements and advancement in image processing technology, the increase and sophistication of photographing functions equipped in digital cameras are remarkable. For this reason, information regarding parameters that can be set for each photographing function and the operating state of the digital camera is increasing, and it is necessary to provide a large amount of information to users of the digital camera.

  As described above, it is necessary to present various kinds of information to the user in the multi-functional digital camera. Such information is displayed on the control panel, but when taking a picture while displaying the through image on the image display unit and observing the through image, the control panel is on a different surface from the image display unit in the camera housing. Since the user is often located far away, the user cannot see the information displayed on the control panel unless he or she makes a troublesome movement such as greatly changing the posture of the camera or his / her posture. This is the same even when photographing is performed while observing a subject image with a finder provided on the back surface of the camera housing without displaying a through image on the image display unit.

  In view of the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new technique for presenting various types of information related to the operation of a digital camera to a user with good visibility.

The present invention is premised on a digital camera that converts an image captured by an image sensor into digital data and records the digital data.
The digital camera which is one aspect of the present invention has a display means for displaying an image captured by the image sensor as a through image when a setting for performing a photographing operation on the digital camera is made, Instructing means for instructing switching of the display operation on the display means, and setting information indicating the setting state of the photographing operation is expressed from the through image in accordance with the instruction given by the instructing means. Display control means for switching to the information display screen to be displayed, and at the same time, setting the display brightness on the display means to be lower than that when the through image is displayed on the display means. Configure.

  The digital camera according to another aspect of the present invention has setting information indicating a setting state of a shooting operation performed on the digital camera and state information indicating a current operation state of the digital camera. First display means to be displayed; and second display means for displaying an image captured by the image sensor as a through image when the digital camera is set to perform a photographing operation. Detecting means for detecting brightness around the digital camera, instruction means for instructing switching of display operation on the second display means, and when the instruction is given by the instruction means, When the surrounding brightness of the digital camera detected by the detecting means is darker than a predetermined brightness, it is presented by the display on the first display means at that time When the control is performed to switch the display of the second display unit to the display of the information display screen in which all of the displayed information is represented on a single screen, while the instruction is performed by the instruction unit Display control means for controlling to stop the display operation by the second display means when the surrounding brightness of the digital camera detected by the detection means is brighter than a predetermined brightness. Constitute.

  According to the present invention, by configuring as described above, the user of the digital camera simply obtains the setting information while maintaining the posture in which the display unit on which the through image is displayed is always watched by simply operating the instruction unit. There is an effect that can be.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an external view of a digital camera embodying the present invention.
In FIG. 1, a control panel 2 disposed on the upper surface of the digital camera 1 has setting information indicating a setting state of a shooting operation performed on the digital camera 1 and state information indicating a current operation state of the digital camera 1. Is a display unit that exclusively displays a monochrome LCD.

  An image monitor 3 disposed on the back surface of the digital camera 1 is a memory that is an image data recording medium in the digital camera 1 and displays a through image of an image being captured by an image sensor provided in the digital camera 1. This is a display unit mainly used for reproducing and displaying captured images represented by data recorded on a card, and a color LCD is used. Further, the image monitor 3 is provided with a backlight that illuminates the display surface brightly. By turning on the backlight, the user can display the backlight even when the surrounding brightness of the digital camera 1 is dark. Can be visually recognized.

The monitor switching button 4 is a button operated by the user when giving an instruction to switch the display operation of the image monitor 3.
The cross key button 5 is a button operated by the user when an instruction to select an item or an instruction to change a display item when various items are displayed on the image monitor 3.

The confirmation button 6 is a button operated by the user when confirming the content of the instruction from the user.
The flash button 7 is a button that is operated to give an instruction to the digital camera 1 to perform shooting using the flash.

  Similar to the cross key button 5, the jog dial 8 is a dial that is rotated by the user when an instruction to select an item when various items are displayed on the image monitor 3 or an instruction to change a display item. It is.

  In addition to the above, the digital camera 1 shown in FIG. 1 is provided with various buttons that are operated to give instructions from the user to the digital camera 1, but description of these buttons is omitted.

Next, FIG. 2 will be described. FIG. 2 shows the internal configuration of the digital camera 1 shown in FIG.
In FIG. 2, the control panel 2 and the image monitor 3 are the same as those shown in FIG.

The taking lens 11 forms a subject image on the surface of the CCD 12.
A CCD (Charge Coupled Device) 12 is an image sensor that photoelectrically converts a subject image formed by the action of the photographing lens 11 and outputs an electrical signal representing an image representing the subject image.

The A / D conversion unit 13 performs analog-digital conversion that converts an electrical signal that is an analog signal output from the CCD 12 into image data that is digital data.
The video processing unit 14 performs correction processing such as white balance and γ correction on the image data output from the A / D conversion unit 13.

  The compression / decompression processing unit 15 performs data compression processing on the image data output from the video processing unit 14 when the digital camera 1 performs a photographing operation, and from the memory card 16 when the digital camera 1 performs a reproduction operation. Data expansion processing is performed on the read image data. In the compression processing and decompression processing of the image data, for example, compression processing and decompression processing by a JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) system is performed.

The memory card 16 is a semiconductor recording medium that records various data such as image data, and is detachable from the digital camera 1.
The image display processing unit 17 receives image data output from the video processing unit 14 when the digital camera 1 performs a shooting operation, or image data read from the compression / decompression processing unit 15 when the digital camera 1 performs a reproduction operation. Processing for processing and conversion, and generating and outputting a video signal for displaying the image represented by these image data on the image monitor 3 is performed according to an instruction from the CPU 18. The image display processing unit 17 generates a video signal from the image data output from the video processing unit 14, thereby displaying a through image on the image monitor 3.

  A CPU (Central Processing Unit) 18 is a central processing unit that controls the operation of the entire digital camera 1 by executing a control program prepared in advance. The control program includes a program for causing the CPU 18 to perform various processes described later, and the CPU 18 executes various processes described later by executing the control program.

  The operation input unit 19 is a general term for a group of switches operated by the user, and the CPU 18 acquires an instruction from the user based on an operation performed on the operation input unit 19 by the user. The operation input unit 19 includes button switches whose states change in response to operations on various buttons such as the monitor switching button 4, the cross key button 5, the confirm button 6, and the flash button 7 shown in FIG. A rotary encoder for detecting the rotation operation of the jog dial 8 is included.

  An AE (Auto Exposure) processing unit 20 measures subject brightness based on image data output from the A / D conversion unit 13 and sets appropriate exposure conditions in accordance with instructions from the CPU 18 for automatic exposure adjustment. Information for performing is provided to the CPU 18.

  The information display processing unit 21 performs processing for generating and outputting a video signal for displaying on the image monitor 3 an information display screen on which various types of information to be presented to the user are displayed in accordance with instructions from the CPU 18.

The digital camera 1 includes these components.
Next, FIG. 3 will be described. This figure shows all display patterns of the control panel 2 shown in FIGS.

In FIG. 3, reference numerals 31-1, 31-2, 31-3, and 31-4 denote displays for presenting the setting status of the flash operation to the user.
31-1 is a setting for operating a forced light emission function when only the arrow drawn at the center is displayed, that is, a function for forcibly emitting a flash in accordance with a shooting instruction regardless of the brightness of the subject. When a circular figure around it is displayed together with the arrow, it indicates that the flash is forcibly prohibited, that is, the flash is set to be prohibited regardless of the brightness of the subject. .

  31-2 is a red-eye reduction light-emitting function, that is, in response to a shooting instruction, the flash is emitted before the digital camera 1 performs a shooting operation, and the pupil portion of an eye such as a person in the captured image becomes red. This is a display for indicating that the setting for operating the function to prevent this is made.

  31-3 indicates that a slow sync flash function is set, that is, a function for performing flash photography with a shutter speed slower than normal in order to reduce underexposure of the background portion during flash photography. It is a display for showing.

Reference numeral 31-4 denotes a display for indicating that the flash light amount correction, that is, the correction of the flash light amount in accordance with an instruction from the user is set.
In addition to the above-described operation of the flash in the digital camera 1, an automatic light emission function for automatically controlling the flash emission based on the brightness of the subject detected by the digital camera 1 itself is provided.

  Reference numeral 32 denotes a spot photometry function, that is, a part of an image represented by image data output from the A / D conversion unit 13 as an exposure detection target by the AE processing unit 20, for example, a region near the center of the image. It is a display for showing that the setting for operating the function to be performed based on the brightness of is made.

Reference numeral 33 denotes a display for indicating that the macro photographing function, that is, the function for setting the focusable range of the photographing lens 11 to be closer than the normal range is set to operate.
Reference numeral 34 denotes a manual focus setting display, that is, a display for indicating that the user is manually set to focus the subject image.

35-1 and 35-2 are for presenting a user with a setting status regarding an operation related to a shooting instruction.
35-1 is set to operate a continuous shooting function, that is, a function that continuously and repeatedly performs a still image shooting operation by the digital camera 1 as long as an operation indicating a shooting instruction to the operation input unit 19 is continued. It is a display to show that

  35-2 is set to operate a self-timer photographing function when the graphic on the left side is displayed, that is, a function for causing the digital camera 1 to perform a photographing operation after a predetermined time has elapsed since the photographing instruction was given. When the graphic on the right side is displayed, it indicates that the remote control photographing function, that is, the function for causing the digital camera 1 to perform a photographing operation by remote control operation using infrared rays or the like is set. .

  Reference numerals 36-1, 36-2, 36-3, 36-4, 36-5, and 36-6 indicate the setting status regarding the image quality of the image data when the image data is recorded on the memory card 16 by performing the photographing operation. It is intended for presentation.

The “TIFF” display of 36-1 is a display for indicating that the setting for recording the image data without performing the compression processing by the compression / decompression processing unit 15 is made.
Reference numerals 36-2 and 36-3 are displays for indicating that the setting for recording the image data subjected to the compression processing by the compression / decompression processing unit 15 is made, and "SHQ" display of 36-2 is made. This indicates that the setting for performing the compression processing with a higher compression rate is made when the “HQ” display of 36-3 is made than when it is displayed.

  In the “SQ1” display of 36-4 and the “SQ2” display of 36-5, the compression / decompression processing unit 15 performs compression processing with a higher compression ratio than when the “HQ” display of 36-3 is displayed. This indicates that the setting applied to the data is made, and “SQ1” display 36-4 or 36 depending on the setting of the number of pixels of the image represented by the image data recorded on the memory card 16 or 36 One of the “SQ2” indications of −5 is displayed.

  Note that the “HQ” display at 36-3 and the “SQ” display at 36-6 indicate that moving image data recorded in the memory card 16 is set when the digital camera 1 is set to perform a moving image shooting operation. One of them is displayed according to the image quality setting.

The “WB” display 37 is a white balance setting display, that is, a display indicating that the setting relating to the white balance is set to something other than the setting to be automatically performed.
The “ISO” display of 38 is a display indicating that the setting relating to the image acquisition sensitivity at the time of the photographing operation is set to something other than the setting that is automatically performed.

Reference numeral 39 denotes a display for indicating that the setting for exposure correction based on an instruction from the user is made.
The “BKT” display of 40 is an auto bracket shooting function, that is, a setting for operating a function for automatically changing the exposure setting value for each frame every time a shooting instruction is issued. It is to show what has been done.

  Reference numeral 41 denotes a recording function, that is, a setting for operating the function of collecting sounds in the surroundings of the digital camera 1 for a predetermined time after the shooting operation and converting them into digital data and recording them in the memory card 16. Is for.

  Of the displays on the control panel 2, what has been described above is for presenting the user with setting information indicating the setting status of the shooting operation performed on the digital camera 1. On the other hand, the display described below is for presenting the user with status information indicating the current operation status of the digital camera 1.

  42 is for displaying the remaining amount of the battery as the power source of the digital camera 1, and the display displays all the bars inside the figure of the battery according to the remaining amount of the battery. Only the lower one is displayed and changed to display blinking.

Reference numeral 43 denotes a segment display for displaying the number of newly recordable images, which is calculated based on the capacity of the recording area that is not recorded in the memory card 16.
The control panel 2 is provided with the above display patterns in advance.

Next, FIG. 4 will be described. This figure shows a screen example of an information display screen displayed on the image monitor 3 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 in accordance with an instruction from the user.
In FIG. 4, reference numeral 51 denotes a screen portion for presenting the setting status of the flash operation to the user, 31-1, 31-2, 31-3, and Setting information equivalent to that displayed by 31-4, that is, setting information related to the forced flash function, forced flash prohibition, red-eye reduction flash function, slow sync flash function, and flash light amount correction, as well as the above-described auto flash function settings Present information to the user.

  Reference numeral 52 denotes a screen portion for indicating that the setting for operating the spot photometry function has been made, and presents to the user information equivalent to that displayed by 32 in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG.

  Reference numeral 53 denotes a screen portion for indicating that the setting for operating the macro photographing function is made, and presents to the user information equivalent to that displayed by 33 in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG.

  Reference numeral 54 denotes a screen portion for showing the setting contents related to the focusing operation of the subject image. The setting is such that the focusing operation is automatically performed by the digital camera 1, or the setting is performed so that the user manually performs the focusing operation. Is shown. This screen portion presents to the user information equivalent to that obtained by the 34 manual focus setting display in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG.

  Reference numeral 55 denotes a screen portion for presenting a user with a setting status regarding an operation related to a shooting instruction, which is equivalent to the display by 35-1 and 35-2 in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG. Setting information, that is, setting information regarding the continuous shooting function, the self-timer function, and the remote control shooting function is presented to the user.

  Reference numeral 56 denotes a screen portion for presenting the user with a setting state regarding the image quality of the image data when the image data is recorded in the memory card 16, and 36-1 and 36- in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG. The image quality setting information equivalent to the display of 2, 36-3, 36-4, 36-5, and 36-6 is presented to the user. In this screen portion, the setting information about the number of pixels of the image expressed by the image data recorded on the memory card and the vertical / horizontal size ratio of the image is presented to the user.

  Reference numeral 57 denotes a screen portion for presenting the user with a setting status for white balance, which illuminates the subject in addition to setting information equivalent to that displayed by 37 in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG. A selection result from preset white balance values set in advance according to the type of light source and the setting contents of correction values instructed by the user are also displayed on the screen portion.

  Reference numeral 58 denotes a screen portion for presenting a user with a setting status related to image acquisition sensitivity at the time of shooting operation. In addition to the information equivalent to the display of 38 in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG. A numerical value indicating the sensitivity is also displayed on the screen portion.

  59 is a screen portion for presenting the user with a setting status for exposure correction according to an instruction from the user, in addition to information equivalent to that displayed by 39 in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG. The set correction value is also displayed on the screen.

  Reference numeral 60 denotes a screen portion for indicating that the setting for operating the auto bracket shooting function is made, and presents to the user information equivalent to that displayed by 40 in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG. .

  Reference numeral 61 denotes a screen portion for indicating that the recording function is set to operate, and presents information equivalent to that obtained by displaying 41 in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG.

  Reference numeral 62 denotes a screen portion for displaying the remaining amount of the battery that is the power source of the digital camera 1, and presents information equivalent to that displayed by 42 in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG. 2 to the user.

  Reference numeral 63 denotes a screen portion for displaying the number of images that can be newly recorded on the memory card 16, and information equivalent to that obtained by the 43 segment display in the display pattern of the control panel 2 shown in FIG. Present.

  As described above, the information display screen shown in FIG. 4 represents all of the various setting information and status information presented by the display on the control panel 2. Therefore, by displaying this information display screen on the image monitor 3, the user greatly changes the position of the camera or his / her posture in order to view the control panel 2 arranged on the upper part of the digital camera 1. Various setting information and status information equivalent to those presented by display on the control panel 2 can be obtained without performing troublesome movements. In addition, since the image monitor 3 is disposed on the back of the digital camera 1 together with the viewfinder, an information providing screen displayed on the image monitor 3 by the user even when shooting while observing the subject image with the viewfinder. It is much easier to see than to see the display on the control panel 2.

Further, on the information display screen, further setting information and status information which are not presented on the control panel 2 described below are expressed.
Reference numeral 64 denotes a screen portion for displaying the current aperture setting value.

  Reference numeral 65 denotes a screen portion for displaying a setting state of a shooting mode indicating how to set an aperture and a shutter speed when performing a shooting operation. For example, a character “Program” is displayed on the screen portion. When it is shown, it is indicated to the user that the program mode in which the digital camera 1 automatically performs these settings is selected.

Reference numeral 66 denotes a screen portion for displaying the current shutter speed setting value.
67 indicates that the exposure is fixed by the AE lock function that fixes the exposure with the photometric value obtained in advance before the photographing operation, or the exposure detection target by the AE processing unit 20 is A / D. It is a screen part for showing that the setting for operating the multi-photometry function based on the luminance of a plurality of areas in the image expressed by the image data output from the conversion unit 13 is made. Here, in the screen portion that presents information related to the multi-photometry function, information indicating the position of the image area set as a photometric target is also presented.

Reference numerals 68-1, 68-2, and 68-3 denote screen portions for displaying set values of sharpness, sharpness difference (contrast), and saturation of a captured image.
Reference numeral 69 denotes a screen portion for displaying the type of the memory card 16 currently attached to the digital camera 1.

  Reference numeral 70 denotes a screen portion for displaying the use status of a buffer memory for temporarily storing image data included in the video processing unit 14 when still image shooting is performed continuously or when moving image shooting is performed. In accordance with the amount of use of the buffer memory, the display is changed to display all 72 graphics or only a part of the graphics.

By displaying the information display screen shown in FIG. 4 on the image monitor 3, the above setting information and status information are presented to the user.
Next, an operation for switching the display operation on the image monitor 3 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The digital camera 1 is provided with a monitor mode setting as one of the preset settings relating to the photographing operation. As the setting of the monitor mode, either “normal mode” or “information display mode” is selected and set.

  When the monitor mode is set to “normal mode”, as shown in FIG. 5A, each time the monitor switching button 4 shown in FIG. Switching between the display operation of the right screen) and the stop of the display operation of the image monitor 3 (the screen on the left side of the figure) is performed. On the other hand, when the monitor mode is set to “information display mode”, as shown in FIG. 5B, each time the monitor switch button 4 shown in FIG. Switching between the display operation of the image (the screen on the right side of the figure) and the display operation of the information display screen (the screen on the left side of the figure) is performed. Thus, the display operation on the image monitor 3 can be switched by giving an instruction to the digital camera 1 by the user operating the monitor switching button 4.

Note that the screens on the right side of each of FIGS. 5A and 5B show a screen on which the current setting contents such as the aperture, shutter speed, exposure correction value, and the like are superimposed and displayed together with the through image.
Here, FIG. 6 will be described. This figure is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the display operation switching processing. This process is a process of switching the display operation on the image monitor 3 in accordance with an operation on the monitor switching button 4.

  The process shown in FIG. 6 is a process performed by the CPU 18 and is started when the CPU 18 detects a pressing operation on the monitor switching button 4 when the digital camera 1 is set to perform a shooting operation. Is done.

  First, in S101, the current operation state of the image monitor 3 is checked, and it is determined whether or not a live image display operation is being performed on the image monitor 3. If the determination result is Yes, that is, if it is determined that the through image display operation is being performed, the process proceeds to S103. On the other hand, if this determination result is No, that is, if it is determined that the through image display operation is not performed, the through image display operation by the image monitor 3 is started in S102. Specifically, when the power supply to the image monitor 3 is not performed, the power supply is started, and the image display processing unit 17 is caused to function to generate a video signal from the image data output from the video processing unit 14. The generated video signal is output to the image monitor 3.

After the process of S102 is completed, the display operation switching process is terminated, and the CPU 18 resumes a routine process for detecting the presence / absence of an operation on the operation input unit 18.
In S103, the current setting status of the monitor mode described above is checked to determine whether or not the monitor mode is set to the information display mode. If this determination result is Yes, that is, if it is determined that the monitor mode is set to the information display mode, in S104, the information display screen shown in FIG. The display operation of is started. Specifically, the CPU 18 gives an instruction to the information display processing unit 21 to generate a video signal representing an information display screen based on various setting information and state information in the digital camera 1 delivered from the CPU 18. The processed video signal is output to the image monitor 3.

  On the other hand, if the result of the determination process in S103 is No, that is, if it is determined that the monitor mode is set to the information display mode, the monitor mode can be regarded as being set to the normal display mode. Is stopped, and the power supply to the image monitor 3 is stopped.

  After the process of S104 or S105 is completed, the display operation switching process is terminated, and the CPU 18 resumes a routine process for detecting the presence / absence of an operation on the operation input unit 18.

  The process so far is the display operation switching process. By performing this processing by the CPU 18, switching of the display operation on the image monitor 3 in accordance with the operation on the monitor switching button 4 as shown in FIG. 5 is realized.

  As a method for switching the display operation on the image monitor 3 in response to an operation on the monitor switching button 4, in addition to the method described above, the setting of the monitor mode is eliminated, and the pressing operation of the monitor switching button 4 is detected. Furthermore, a through image display operation control process (a process corresponding to S102 in FIG. 6), an information display screen display operation control process (a process corresponding to S104 in FIG. 6), and a display operation stop control process for the image monitor 3 The CPU 18 performs any one of the processes (the process corresponding to S105 in FIG. 6) in this order, and the operation of the monitor switching button 4 is to display the through image, display the information display screen, and stop the display operation of the image monitor 3. It may be switched cyclically according to the above.

Next, two cases of processing for changing various settings performed on the digital camera 1 will be described.
In the first case, a dedicated button for changing the setting is prepared in the operation input unit 19. Here, as an example, processing for changing the setting of flash operation will be described. FIG. 7 shows a flowchart showing the processing contents of the flash operation setting change processing.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the digital camera 1 is provided with a flash button 7. Further, as described above, the setting for the flash operation in the digital camera 1 can be any of auto flash, forced flash, red-eye reduction flash, slow sync flash, and forced flash prohibition. In the processing shown in FIG. 7, every time the flash button 7 is pressed, the settings regarding the operation of these flashes are cyclically changed, and the contents of the changed settings are the control panel 2 and the image monitor 3. It is presented to the user by the information display screen displayed on the screen.

  The process shown in FIG. 7 is a process performed by the CPU 18 and is started when the CPU 18 detects a pressing operation on the flash button 7 when the digital camera 1 is set to perform a shooting operation. The

  First, in step S201, the setting content of the flash operation is changed to one in the order of automatic flash emission → forced flash emission → red-eye reduction flash emission → slow sync flash emission → flash forced inhibition → auto flash emission →. Is set.

  In S202, the current state of the image monitor 3 is checked. As a result, if the operation of the image monitor 3 has been stopped, the process proceeds to S205, if the image monitor 3 is performing an information display screen display operation, the process proceeds to S203, and the image monitor 3 displays a through image display operation. If so, the process proceeds to S204.

  In S203, an instruction is given to the information display processing unit 21, and the contents of the screen portion (51 screen portion in FIG. 4) presenting the flash operation on the information display screen displayed on the image monitor 3 are the same as those in S201. It is changed so as to indicate the setting contents after being changed by the processing. After the process of S203 is completed, the process proceeds to S205.

  In S204, an instruction is given to the information display processing unit 21, and a figure indicating the setting content of the flash operation after being changed by the processing in S201 is superimposed and displayed on the through image displayed on the image monitor 3 for a predetermined time. . This time is set to a time sufficient for the user to visually recognize the graphic, for example, 3 seconds. After the process of S204 is completed, the process proceeds to S205.

  In S205, the setting contents after the display (31-1, 31-2, and 31-3 in FIG. 3) showing the setting contents of the flash operation in the display on the control panel 2 is changed by the process in S201. It is switched as shown.

After the process of S205 is completed, the flash operation setting change process is terminated, and the CPU 18 resumes a routine process for detecting the presence / absence of an operation on the operation input unit 18.
The above processing is the flash operation setting change processing. When this process is performed by the CPU 18, the flash operation setting is cyclically changed every time the flash button 7 is pressed, and the contents of the changed setting are displayed on the control panel 2 and the image monitor 3. The information display screen is displayed to the user.

  Next, a second case of processing for changing various settings made on the digital camera 1 will be described. This is a case where a dedicated button for changing the setting is not prepared in the operation input unit 19 and various settings are changed by operating a general-purpose button. Here, a process of changing various settings by operating the cross key button 5 and the jog dial 8 provided in the digital camera 1 shown in FIG. 1 using the information display screen displayed on the image monitor 3 will be described. To do.

First, a method for changing the setting using the information display screen will be described with reference to FIG.
When a pressing operation on the cross key button 5 is detected while the information display screen is displayed on the image monitor 3, a cursor indicating an item whose setting is to be changed is displayed on the information display screen, and the operated key The cursor moves on the information display screen in the direction corresponding to the button. Here, for example, the items whose settings cannot be changed by the user, such as the aperture item (64 in FIG. 4) and the shutter speed item (66 in FIG. 4) when the program mode is set, as described above. It is convenient to skip and move the cursor to be moved in response to the pressing operation on the cross key button 5.

  FIG. 8A shows the screen portion for presenting the user with the setting status of the item “ISO”, that is, the setting status regarding the image acquisition sensitivity during the shooting operation, as a result of moving the cursor in this manner (FIG. 4). The cursor is positioned at (58 screen portion), which indicates that this setting is a change target. In the figure, the cursor is indicated by hatching around the white character “400”. However, a method of changing the color of the target item, changing the color of the character of the target item, blinking the character of the target item, etc. May indicate the position of the cursor.

  When a rotation operation on the jog dial 8 is detected when the cursor is positioned on an item whose setting is to be changed on the information display screen by an operation on the cross key button 5, a list of setting contents that can be set in the item is displayed. It is displayed on the information display screen in the form of a pop-up menu. FIG. 8B shows a state in which a pop-up menu showing a list of acquisition sensitivities that can be set in the setting item “ISO” is displayed on the information display screen.

  Thereafter, one of the items shown in the pop-up menu is further selected in accordance with the rotation operation on the jog dial 8, and the item whose setting is to be changed is changed to the selected content. Thereafter, when an operation on the cross key button 5 and the jog dial 8 is not detected for a predetermined time, for example, 1 second, or a pressing operation on the cross key button 5 is detected again, the pop-up menu is closed.

The setting is changed using the information display screen as described above.
Here, FIG. 9 will be described. This figure is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the setting change processing. This processing is performed for the digital camera 1 according to the operation on the cross key button 5 and the jog dial 8 when the information display screen is displayed on the image monitor 3 by the method described with reference to FIG. It is a process to change the setting of.

  The process shown in FIG. 9 is a process performed by the CPU 18 and is started when the information display screen is displayed on the image monitor 3, and is immediately ended when the information display screen on the image monitor 3 is stopped.

  First, in S301, it is determined whether or not a pressing operation on the cross key button 5 is detected. If this determination result is Yes, the process proceeds to S302, and if No, the process proceeds to S306.

  In S302, if a pop-up menu is displayed on the information display screen currently displayed on the image monitor 3, an instruction is given to the information display processing unit 21 and the pop-up menu is closed.

In S303, an instruction is given to the information display processing unit 21, and the cursor is moved in a direction corresponding to the key button whose pressing operation is detected by the processing in S301.
In S304, it is determined whether or not the item where the moved cursor is currently positioned can change the setting contents by the user. Only when this determination result is No, the process returns to S303 to move the cursor. The process is repeated.

  In S305, an instruction is given to the information display processing unit 21, and the cursor is displayed on the information display screen to present the item where the cursor is currently located. After this process is completed, the process returns to S301 and the above-described process is repeated.

In S306, it is determined whether or not a rotation operation for the jog dial 8 is detected. If this determination result is Yes, the process proceeds to S307, and if No, the process proceeds to S309.
In S307, an instruction is given to the information display processing unit 21, and a list of setting contents that can be set in the item where the cursor is currently positioned on the information display screen is displayed on the information display screen in the form of a pop-up menu. .

  In S308, one of the setting contents displayed in the pop-up menu is selected according to the rotation operation on the jog dial 8 detected by the process in S306, and the setting is made for the item where the cursor is currently positioned on the information display screen. The content is changed to the selected one. After this process is completed, the process returns to S306 and the above-described process is repeated.

  In S309, it is determined whether or not the pressing operation on the cross key button 5 in S301 has not been detected and the rotation operation on the jog dial 8 in S306 has not been detected for a predetermined time (for example, 1 second). Only when the determination result is Yes, if the pop-up menu is displayed on the information display screen currently displayed on the image monitor 3 in S310, an instruction is given to the information display processing unit 21 and the pop-up menu is closed.

After the determination result of S309 is No, or after the process of S310 is completed, the process returns to S301 and the above-described process is repeated.
The above processing is the setting change processing. This processing is performed by the CPU 18 so that the digital camera 1 can change the setting using the information display screen.

  In the above-described setting change using the information display screen, when a rotation operation on the jog dial 8 is detected, a list of setting contents that can be set for the item is displayed on the information display screen in the form of a pop-up menu. Although displayed, the setting contents may be changed directly without performing display in a pop-up menu format according to the rotation operation on the jog dial 8.

Next, a modification of the display operation switching method on the image monitor 3 will be described.
In the switching of the display operation on the image monitor 3 described above, when the monitor mode is set to the normal mode, switching between displaying the through image and canceling the display operation of the image monitor 3 can be performed by pressing the monitor switching button 4. It was like that. On the other hand, in the switching of the display operation on the image monitor 3 described below, even when the monitor mode is set to the normal mode, the brightness around the digital camera 1 becomes darker than the predetermined brightness. The display on the image monitor 3 is switched between the through image and the information display screen by a pressing operation on the monitor switching button 4. By doing so, even if it becomes difficult to visually recognize the display on the control panel 2 because the surroundings of the digital camera 1 have become dark, the user does not change the monitor mode setting on the image monitor 3. Various setting information and status information can be obtained from the displayed information display screen.

  Furthermore, since the visibility of the image monitor is improved when the surroundings of the digital camera 1 are dark, the brightness of display on the image monitor 3 is lowered when displaying the information display screen on the image monitor 3 than when displaying the through image. . In order to reduce the brightness of the display on the image monitor 3, the power supplied to the image monitor 3, specifically, the backlight provided in the image monitor 3 for illuminating the display surface of the image monitor 3 is used. Reduce applied power. By doing so, since the power consumption of the digital camera 1 is reduced, the usable time of the digital camera 1 using a battery as a power source can be extended.

  Here, FIG. 10 will be described. This figure is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the display operation switching process based on the brightness of the surroundings of the digital camera 1, which is performed by the CPU 18 in order to realize the above-described method by the digital camera 1.

  The process shown in FIG. 10 is a process performed in place of the process shown in FIG. 6 when the monitor mode is set to the normal mode, and when the digital camera 1 is set to perform a shooting operation. When the CPU 18 detects a pressing operation on the monitor switching button 4, the operation is started.

  First, in S401, the current operation state of the image monitor 3 is checked, and it is determined whether or not a live image display operation is being performed on the image monitor 3. If the determination result is Yes, the process proceeds to S404. If the determination result is No, the process proceeds to S402.

  In S402, power supply to the image monitor 3 is set to normal power to start power supply and the image monitor 3 is driven. In subsequent S403, the display operation of the through image by the image monitor 3 is started. After the completion of this process, the display operation switching process ends, and the CPU 18 resumes a routine process for detecting the presence / absence of an operation on the operation input unit 18.

  In S404, an instruction is given to the AE processing unit 20, and the brightness of the image is detected from the image data representing the image acquired by the CCD 12. The detected luminance is regarded as a value indicating the brightness around the digital camera 1, and it is determined whether or not the luminance is lower than a predetermined value. If the result of this determination is Yes, that is, if the brightness around the digital camera 1 is considered to be darker than the predetermined brightness, the process proceeds to S405. On the other hand, if the result of this determination is No, that is, if the brightness around the digital camera 1 is considered to be brighter than the predetermined brightness, the process proceeds to S407.

  In S405, the power to the image monitor 3 is reduced to a power lower than normal. In subsequent S406, the display operation of the information display screen by the image monitor 3 is started instead of the through image display operation. After the completion of this process, the display operation switching process ends, and the CPU 18 resumes a routine process for detecting the presence / absence of an operation on the operation input unit 18.

  In S407, the through image display operation is stopped, and the power supply to the image monitor 3 is stopped. After the completion of this process, the display operation switching process ends, and the CPU 18 resumes a routine process for detecting the presence / absence of an operation on the operation input unit 18. In S404, ambient brightness is detected from the image data. However, if a dedicated photometric sensor is provided, it may be detected from the sensor output.

  The above processing is the display operation switching processing based on the brightness around the digital camera 1. When the CPU 18 performs this process, switching of the display operation on the image monitor 3 described above is realized.

  Note that the visibility of the information display screen when displayed on the image monitor 3 is generally better than that of the through image, so that the display operation switching on the image monitor 3 described with reference to FIGS. In the method, the process of S402 of FIG. 10 is inserted immediately before the process of S102 of FIG. 6 and the process of S405 of FIG. 10 is inserted immediately before the process of S104 of FIG. When displaying a screen, it is also possible to lower the luminance of display on the image monitor 3 than when displaying a through image. By doing so, the power consumption of the digital camera 1 is reduced, so that the usable time of the digital camera 1 using a battery as a power source becomes longer, which is beneficial.

  In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various improvements and changes can be made.

1 is an external view of a digital camera that implements the present invention. It is a figure which shows the internal structure of the digital camera shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows all the display patterns of a control panel. It is a figure which shows the example of a screen of an information display screen. It is a figure explaining switching of the display operation of an image monitor. It is a flowchart which shows the processing content of a display operation switching process. It is a flowchart which shows the processing content of a flash operation setting change process. It is a figure explaining the change of the setting using an information display screen. It is a flowchart which shows the processing content of a setting change process. It is a flowchart which shows the processing content of the display operation switching process based on the surrounding brightness of a digital camera.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Digital camera 2 Control panel 3 Image monitor 4 Monitor switching button 5 Four-way controller button 6 Confirm button 7 Flash button 8 Jog dial 11 Shooting lens 12 CCD
13 A / D conversion unit 14 Video processing unit 15 Compression / decompression processing unit 16 Memory card 17 Image display processing unit 18 CPU
19 Operation Input Unit 20 AE Processing Unit 21 Information Display Processing Unit

Claims (5)

A digital camera that converts an image captured by an image sensor into digital data and records the digital data,
Display means for displaying an image captured by the image sensor as a through image when the digital camera is set to perform a photographing operation;
Instruction means for giving an instruction to switch the display operation on the display means;
In response to an instruction given by the instruction unit, the display unit switches the display from the through image to an information display screen on which setting information indicating a setting state of a shooting operation is represented. Display control means for lowering the display brightness setting than that when the through image is displayed on the display means;
A digital camera comprising: Comprising display means different from the display means for displaying setting information indicating a setting state of a shooting operation performed on the digital camera;
On the information display screen, setting information presented by the other display means is expressed.
The digital camera according to claim 1.   3. The digital camera according to claim 2, wherein more information about the digital camera is expressed on the information display screen than what is presented by display on the another display unit. A digital camera that converts an image captured by an image sensor into digital data and records the digital data,
First display means for displaying setting information indicating a setting state of a shooting operation performed on the digital camera and state information indicating a current operation state of the digital camera;
A second display means for displaying an image captured by the image sensor as a through image when the digital camera is set to perform a shooting operation;
Detecting means for detecting brightness around the digital camera;
Instruction means for giving an instruction to switch the display operation on the second display means;
When the instruction is given by the instruction means, and the surrounding brightness of the digital camera detected by the detection means is darker than a predetermined brightness, the display on the first display means at that time While the control of switching the display of the second display unit to the display of the information display screen in which all of the presented information is expressed on one screen is performed, the instruction is performed by the instruction unit In the case, when the surrounding brightness of the digital camera detected by the detecting means is brighter than a predetermined brightness, a display control means for performing control to stop the display operation by the second display means,
A digital camera comprising:   The digital camera according to claim 4, wherein the detection unit detects the brightness based on an output signal of the image sensor.