JP2012050011A - Photographing system, photographing control method, photographing device, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a photographing technique capable of efficiently photographing a desired image without missing, by giving information on a subject to be photographed and the timing of photographing to a user of each photographing device.SOLUTION: A photographing system which allows photography of the subject by cooperative photography performed by a plurality of cooperating photographing devices communicable via a network comprises one photographing device and the other photographing devices constituting the photographing devices. The one photographing device comprises a request unit which when a photographed subject is recognized as a subject to be photographed cooperatively, transmits message information containing subject information on the photographed subject and a network address set to the one photographing device, to the other photographing devices to request the start of the cooperative photography. The other photographing devices each comprises: a selection unit which displays the subject information included in the received message information and receives selection on whether the request for the start of the cooperative photography, the request transmitted from the one photographing device, is to be accepted; and an informing unit which informs the one photographing device identified by the network address included in the message information, of the result of selection.

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging system, an imaging control method, an imaging apparatus, and a program.

  A technique for photographing a subject by operating a plurality of cameras in cooperation has been proposed. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method of transmitting a message requesting activation of another camera from one camera to another camera and prompting a user who uses the other camera to start photographing. ing. This technique is effective when a moving subject is continuously photographed by a plurality of cameras. By installing multiple cameras so as to cover the movement range of the subject and requesting the camera to be activated sequentially according to the timing when the subject moves from the shooting range of one camera to the shooting range of another camera, The moving subject can be photographed without interruption.

  In Patent Document 2, in a monitoring system using a plurality of monitoring cameras, when a user operates the shooting direction or zoom of one camera, the shooting direction or zoom of another camera is prevented so that a blind spot does not occur in the monitoring area. How to adjust is shown.

JP 2007-173963 A JP 2009-049798 A

  In the above-described Patent Documents 1 and 2, there is a problem in that information on a subject to be photographed cannot be transmitted to a camera user. For example, when multiple families participating in a children's athletic meet are supposed to use each other's children's photography, information such as where their children are and when to participate in the competition Many parents do not know. Therefore, in the method of simply requesting the start of shooting as in the prior art, the requested user cannot know what to shoot. As a result, there is a problem in that a desired video cannot be efficiently captured even when a plurality of cameras are used.

  In the present invention, when a specific subject is photographed using a plurality of photographing devices, the user of each photographing device is notified of information on the subject to be photographed and the timing of photographing, so that it is efficient without missing a desired image. To provide a photographing technique that can be photographed automatically.

In order to achieve such an object, a photographing system according to one aspect of the present invention is a photographing system capable of photographing a subject by cooperative photographing in cooperation with a plurality of photographing devices that can communicate via a network. ,
One imaging device constituting the plurality of imaging devices is
Holding means for receiving and holding network addresses set in other imaging devices constituting the plurality of imaging devices;
Recognizing means for recognizing whether a subject photographed by the photographing means is a subject to be subjected to cooperative photographing in the one photographing device by comparison with registered subject information;
Message information including subject information of the photographed subject and a network address set in the one photographing device when the photographed subject is recognized by the recognition means as the subject of the cooperative photographing. Is transmitted to the other photographing apparatus using the network address held by the holding means, and requesting means for requesting the start of the cooperative shooting,
Other imaging devices constituting the plurality of imaging devices are:
Receiving means for receiving the message information;
Selecting means for displaying the subject information included in the message information received by the receiving means and accepting a selection as to whether or not to accept the request for starting cooperative shooting from the one imaging device;
Notification means for notifying the selection result of the selection means to the one photographing device specified by the network address included in the message information.

  According to the present invention, when photographing a specific subject using a plurality of photographing devices, the user of each photographing device is notified of information on the subject to be photographed and timing of photographing, thereby missing a desired image. It is possible to efficiently shoot without any trouble.

The figure explaining the whole structure of the cooperative imaging | photography system concerning 1st Embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the imaging apparatus according to the first embodiment. The figure explaining the specific flow of a process of a cooperative shooting setting. The figure explaining the specific flow of a process of a cooperative shooting setting. The figure explaining the specific flow of a process of a cooperative shooting setting. The figure explaining the specific flow of a process of a photography request. The figure explaining the specific flow of a process of a photography request. The figure explaining the specific flow of the cooperative imaging | photography setting process in 3rd Embodiment. The figure explaining the functional structure of the imaging device concerning 5th Embodiment. The figure explaining the specific flow of the imaging | photography request | requirement process in 5th Embodiment. The figure explaining the specific flow of the imaging | photography request | requirement process in 6th Embodiment. The figure explaining the functional structure of the imaging device in 8th Embodiment. The figure explaining the specific flow of the cooperative imaging | photography setting process in 8th Embodiment. (A) The figure which illustrates cooperative imaging information, (b) The figure which illustrates the cooperative imaging information which the imaging device of the request origin recorded, (c) The figure which illustrates the cooperative imaging information which the imaging device of the request destination recorded. (A) The figure which illustrates the processing method selection screen of a photography request message, (b) The figure which illustrates consent information, (c) The figure which illustrates the display of the to-be-photographed object's position in the imaging device of a request destination.

(First embodiment)
With reference to FIG. 1, an overall configuration of a cooperative shooting system (hereinafter referred to as a shooting system) according to the first embodiment of the present invention and a shooting control method executed by the shooting system will be exemplarily described. Examples of the shooting facility 101 in which a plurality of shooting apparatuses perform shooting of a specific subject (hereinafter “collaborative shooting”) include facilities such as a school and a playground. The photographing facility 101 has a plurality of photographers A to C, the photographer A owns the photographing device 106, the photographer B owns the photographing device 107, and the photographer C owns the photographing device 108. Yes. The photographing devices 106 to 108 are capable of photographing at least one of a moving image and a still image. The photographing devices 106 to 108 have a wireless communication function, and mutual communication between the photographing devices 106 to 108 is possible via the wireless access point 109. The photographer A house 102, the photographer B house 103, and the photographer C house 104 can be connected to the server 105 via the network 150.

  The photographer A house 102 and the photographer B house 103 are provided with media servers 111 and 112 and display devices 113 and 114, respectively. The photographer C's house 104 is provided with a PC 110 and a display device 115. In the photographing facility 101, the photographing devices 106 to 108 can be connected to the server 105, the media server 112, the media server 111, and the PC 110 via the wireless access point 109 and the network 150.

  The media servers 111 and 112 and the PC 110 that function as information processing apparatuses can be connected to the imaging apparatuses 106 to 108 by communication by wired connection in addition to connection by wireless communication via the network 150. The media servers 111 and 112 and the PC 110 can store video data such as moving images and still images captured by the imaging devices 106 to 108. Further, the media servers 111 and 112 and the PC 110 can display the stored video data on the display devices 113 to 115. Furthermore, the media servers 111 and 112 and the PC 110 are connected to the server 105 via the network 150, and can communicate with each other via the server 105 to transmit and receive stored video data.

  The functional configuration of the imaging devices 106 to 108 will be described with reference to FIG. The imaging apparatuses 106 to 108 need not all have the same configuration, but are assumed to have the same configuration here for simplicity. The imaging devices 106 to 108 include a lens unit 201, an image sensor 202, a storage device 203, a cooperative shooting management unit 204, a subject recognition unit 205, a communication unit 206, a nonvolatile memory 207, a display unit 208, and an operation unit 209. The storage device 203 records captured video data. The cooperative shooting management unit 204 transmits and receives messages necessary for cooperative shooting and manages the state of the shooting apparatus. In addition, as a preparation for performing cooperative shooting, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 stores, in the storage device 203 or the nonvolatile memory 207, communication settings in the set shooting device and information on a subject to be subjected to the cooperative shooting. In addition, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 adds metadata that can be identified as being shot during cooperative shooting to the video data shot in the cooperative shooting mode, and metadata for specifying a subject and a shooting location. Is possible.

  A subject recognition unit 205 recognizes a subject within a frame of video data captured by the image sensor 202 and registers subject information for specifying the recognized subject. In this embodiment, it is assumed that a subject name is registered in advance as subject information in a photographing device that performs cooperative photographing. Although there may be a plurality of pieces of subject information, it is assumed here that only one piece of subject information is registered in each photographing apparatus for the sake of simplicity.

  Although any communication method can be used for the communication unit 206, in the present embodiment, for example, a wireless LAN is used as the communication method, and communication in both the infrastructure mode and the ad hoc mode is possible. The nonvolatile memory 207 stores data used for cooperative shooting. A display unit 208 displays captured video data, messages used in cooperative shooting, and a user interface. The operation unit 209 receives an operation from the user.

(Overall flow of cooperative shooting)
An overview of the overall flow of cooperative shooting using the cooperative shooting system will be described. Here, as an example, a case where the child D of the photographer A is the subject in the athletic meet and the photographer B and the photographer C cooperate to photograph the subject (child D).

    <Cooperative shooting setting> As a preparation for performing cooperative shooting, setting for performing shooting in the cooperative shooting mode (cooperative shooting setting) is performed on the photographing apparatus. In the photographing facility 101, the photographers A to C bring their photographing devices 106 to 108 together to perform communication settings in the photographing device, exchange information on the subject D to be subjected to cooperative photographing, and the like. The stored information is held in the storage device 203. For example, in a photographing system capable of photographing a subject through cooperative photographing in which a plurality of photographing devices cooperate, one photographing device uses subject network information and subject information for specifying a subject for cooperative photographing. , Send it to other imaging devices. In addition, the network address set in another photographing apparatus and subject information for specifying the subject for cooperative photographing are received and held to share information used for cooperative photographing. When the cooperative shooting setting is completed, the imaging device starts up in the cooperative shooting mode.

  <Shooting> Photographers A to C each shoot what they want to shoot. Even in a state where the photographing apparatus is activated in the cooperative photographing mode, the subject of photographing is not limited to the subject D, and each of the photographers A to C photographs in a normal photographing mode that is not the cooperative photographing mode. Shooting can be performed as in. The cooperative photographing management unit 204 adds metadata that can be identified during the cooperative photographing and metadata for specifying the subject and the photographing location to the video data photographed in the cooperative photographing mode. . The photographed video data is stored in the storage device 203 of each photographing apparatus.

  <Cooperative Shooting Request> The photographer A requests the photographers B and C to photograph the child D when it is time for his child D to participate in the competition. When the photographer A transmits a photographing request with his / her own photographing device 106 via the operation unit 209, the communication unit 206 of the photographing device 106 notifies the photographing devices 107 and 108 of the photographers B and C of the photographing request. . When the communication unit 206 of the photographing apparatuses 107 and 108 receives the photographing request, the communication unit 206 displays a message prompting photographing of the child D on the display unit 208 of the photographers B and C. The photographers B and C confirming the message displayed on the display unit 208 determine whether or not to accept the photographing request from the photographer A according to the respective photographing conditions by the photographing devices 107 and 108. To select through. When selection via the operation unit 209 is input, the communication unit 206 of the imaging devices 107 and 108 transmits the selection result to the imaging device 106. When the communication unit 206 of the imaging device 106 receives the selection results from the imaging devices 107 and 108, the display unit 208 of the imaging device 106 displays the received selection results and presents it to the photographer A of the imaging device 106. The photographer A confirms the response of the photographing request to another photographer by the display on the display unit 208.

  <Execution of Collaborative Shooting> When the photographers B and C select the approval of the collaborative shooting and the photographers A to C perform the collaborative shooting, the photographers A to C use the respective photographing devices to perform various operations. The child D is photographed at the photographing place and the photographing method. For example, subject information for identifying a subject to be subjected to cooperative photographing is displayed on the display unit of the photographing devices of the photographers B and C who have approved the cooperative photographing, and based on this display, the photographers B and C are displayed. Can identify a subject to be subjected to cooperative shooting.

  <Storage of video data> It is assumed that the athletic meet is ended and the photographers A to C return home. The photographers A to C connect the photographing device to the media servers 111 and 112 and the PC 110 at the photographer's home, and store the photographed video data. When the video data is saved, the media server 111 and the PC 110 notify each other through the server 105 that the new video data has been saved, and the media server 111 and the PC 110 that have received the notification register the new video data. Notify the media server 112.

  <Acquisition of Video Data Taken in Cooperative Shooting> The media server 112 of the photographer A searches the subject's metadata to search among the newly arrived data of the media server 111 of the photographer B and the PC 110 of the photographer C. Video data of child D that has been subjected to cooperative shooting is acquired. For example, it is also possible to store the network address of another imaging device that has accepted cooperative shooting in order to specify the imaging device from which video data is acquired later.

  <Browsing Video Data> When the photographer A instructs the play list reproduction of the child D, the media server 112 uses the video data captured by the photographer A and the video data acquired from the media server 111 and the PC 110, for example, Create playlists arranged in time order. Alternatively, the media server 112 generates a playlist of subjects by grouping video data according to shooting parameters or feature amounts of subject images. By reproducing (displaying) the video data based on the generated playlist, the photographer A can view the video data of the child D with abundant variations.

  As described above, it is possible to easily obtain video data shot at various shooting points and angles, which are difficult for one person to shoot, by shooting using a plurality of shooting devices. This makes it possible to efficiently shoot without missing a shot.

  Here, the number of photographing apparatuses used for cooperative photographing is three, but the gist of the present invention is not limited to this example, and a plurality of photographing apparatuses can be used. In the example described above, an example in which a request for cooperative photographing is transmitted from the photographing device 106 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this example, and the photographing devices 107 and 108 request cooperative photographing from other photographing devices. Can also be performed mutually.

(Cooperative shooting setting process)
Next, a specific flow of the cooperative shooting setting process will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. As a premise for starting cooperative shooting settings, it is assumed here that a network address (IP address) for each shooting apparatus to connect to an access point is assigned. Further, it is assumed that an invariable IP address is assigned during the cooperative shooting period by using a DHCP reservation function. Hereinafter, this network address (IP address) is referred to as a fixed IP address, and the photographing devices 106 to 108 are assigned fixed IP addresses of 192.168.1.1 to 192.168.1.3. . In addition, information (subject information) for specifying each subject of the photographing devices 106 to 108 is set in the subject recognition unit 205 of the photographing devices 106 to 108. Here, it is assumed that the photographing device 106: “Taro”, the photographing device 107: “Kenichi”, and the photographing device 108: “Hanako” are registered.

  First, when the photographer A instructs to start the cooperative shooting setting in the reception mode via the operation unit 209 of the imaging device 106, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of the shooting device 106 starts the cooperative shooting setting in the reception mode (S300). , S301, S302).

  Next, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of the shooting apparatus 106 instructs the communication unit 206 to activate the wireless LAN in the ad hoc mode (S303). Receiving the instruction, the communication unit 206 starts in the ad hoc mode if the wireless LAN is stopped (S304—Yes) (S307). If the wireless LAN is not stopped (S304-No) and activated in the infrastructure mode (S305-Yes), the infrastructure mode is terminated (S306), and the wireless LAN is activated in the ad hoc mode (S307).

  On the other hand, when the photographers B and C instruct to start the cooperative shooting setting in the transmission mode via the operation unit 209 of the shooting apparatuses 107 and 108, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of the shooting apparatuses 107 and 108 sets the cooperative shooting setting. The transmission mode is started (S300, S301, S312). Subsequently, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of the shooting apparatuses 107 and 108 instructs the communication unit 206 to start the wireless LAN in the ad hoc mode (S303). Upon receiving the instruction, the communication unit 206 of the photographing apparatuses 107 and 108 starts in the ad hoc mode if the wireless LAN is stopped (S304—Yes) (S307). If the wireless LAN is not stopped (S304-No) and is activated in the infrastructure mode (S305-Yes), the communication unit 206 of the imaging devices 107 and 108 ends the infrastructure mode (S306), and the wireless LAN is set up in the ad hoc mode. Start (S307).

  If another photographer unrelated to the photographers A to C performs cooperative shooting settings nearby, there is a risk of crosstalk in ad hoc mode communication. In the present embodiment, during the cooperative shooting setting, the wireless LAN transmission power is suppressed to a level at which communication is possible only in the vicinity, and an instruction is displayed to the photographer to bring the imaging devices performing the cooperative shooting setting closer to each other ( S308). When the photographer brings the photographing devices close to each other and enters the communicable area, the wireless LAN module of the communication unit 206 finds a communication partner (S309) and connects in the ad hoc mode (S310). When connected, the communication unit 206 returns a connection completion response to the cooperative shooting management unit 204 (S311).

  When the wireless communication (wireless LAN) connection is established, the imaging devices 107 and 108 activated in the transmission mode and the imaging device 106 activated in the reception mode are paired.

  The flowchart of FIG. 4 described below shows the processing of the photographing apparatus activated in the transmission mode (S313-No), and the flowchart of FIG. 5 shows the processing of the photographing apparatus activated in the reception mode (S313). -Yes).

  The flow of cooperative shooting setting in the cooperative shooting system according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. First, the description will be moved to FIG. 4 and processing in the photographing apparatuses 107 and 108 activated in the transmission mode will be described. Upon receiving the notification of the completion of connection from the communication unit 206, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 instructs the communication unit 206 to notify the connection-destination shooting device of the startup mode of the cooperative shooting setting of the own shooting device. In response to this instruction, the communication unit 206 notifies the connection destination imaging apparatus of information indicating the activation mode (S401, S402).

  Furthermore, a notification of the activation mode is received from the connected imaging device (S403). In ad hoc mode, two or more communication devices cannot transmit data at the same time. Therefore, when performing cooperative shooting settings with three or more imaging devices, all devices other than the imaging device that is transmitting data are in a transmission waiting state. maintain. When the notification of the activation mode is received from the connected imaging device (S404-Yes), the activation mode of the connected imaging device is confirmed (S405). If the connection destination of the image capturing apparatus 107 is the image capturing apparatus 108, the connection destination image capturing apparatus 108 is also activated in the transmission mode, so this processing is terminated without performing pairing (S406-No), and step S309. Move on to pairing with another camera that has been discovered in.

  On the other hand, when the connection destination of the image capturing apparatus 107 is the image capturing apparatus 106, the connection destination is activated in the reception mode (S406-Yes), so information for performing cooperative shooting from the image capturing apparatus 107 to the image capturing apparatus 106. (Collaborative shooting information) is transmitted (S407). The cooperative photographing information includes a fixed IP address of the photographing apparatus 107 and subject information for specifying a subject in cooperative photographing. As described above, it is assumed that the subject name is used as the subject information, and the subject name is registered in the subject recognition unit 205 in advance. FIG. 14A shows the data structure of cooperative shooting information transmitted by the shooting apparatus 107. The cooperative shooting information includes a fixed IP address 1401 and a subject name 1402 as subject information.

  The explanation is moved to FIG. 5, and when the photographing device 106 activated in the reception mode receives the cooperative photographing information from the photographing device 107 activated in the transmission mode (S501), the cooperative photographing management unit 204 of the photographing device 106 cooperates. The shooting information is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 207 (S502). Subsequently, the cooperative photographing management unit 204 of the photographing apparatus 106 instructs the communication unit 206 to transmit a registration completion notification, and the communication unit 206 transmits this to the photographing apparatus 107 (S503).

  Returning to FIG. 4, when the communication unit 206 of the photographing apparatus 107 receives a registration completion notification (S408-Yes), the cooperative photographing management unit 204 of the photographing apparatus 107 stores “waiting for cooperative photographing start” as the current apparatus state. Is recorded in the memory (S409).

  In the above description, the processing between the imaging device 106 and the imaging device 107 has been described. However, the same processing is performed between the imaging device 106 and the imaging device 108, so that the imaging device 107 and the imaging device 108 cooperate. The shooting information is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 207 of the shooting device 106. FIG. 14B shows a data structure in the nonvolatile memory. The apparatus state 1411, the cooperative shooting information number 1412, and the cooperative shooting information 1413 and 1414 are included. The cooperative shooting information 1413 includes a fixed IP address 1415 and a subject name 1417, and the cooperative shooting information 1414 includes a fixed IP address 1416 and a subject name 1418.

  The explanation is moved to FIG. 5, and the cooperative photographing management unit 204 of the photographing apparatus 106 completes the reception processing of the cooperative photographing information for all the communication partners discovered in step S307 (S504-No), and then the nonvolatile memory 207. Is read out (S505). Next, a fixed IP address is acquired from the cooperative photographing information, and the cooperative photographing information of the other photographing devices is transmitted to the photographing device indicated by each fixed IP address (S506). Here, cooperative photographing information of the photographing device 106 and the photographing device 108 is sent to the photographing device 107, and cooperative photographing information of the photographing device 106 and the photographing device 107 is sent to the photographing device 108.

  Returning to FIG. 4, the cooperative photographing management unit 204 of the photographing apparatuses 107 and 108 records the cooperative photographing information received from the photographing apparatus 106 in the nonvolatile memory (S410-Yes, S411). Next, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 changes the current apparatus state from “wait for adjustment shooting start” to “during cooperative shooting” and records it in the nonvolatile memory 207 (S412). FIG. 14C is a diagram illustrating data structures 1421 and 1422 in the nonvolatile memory 207 of the imaging devices 107 and 108. In the data structures 1421 and 1422, the number “2” of recorded cooperative photographing information is registered in the cooperative photographing information number. The cooperative photographing information 1431 in the data structure 1421 is information on the photographing device 106, and the cooperative photographing information 1432 is information on the photographing device 108. Further, the cooperative shooting information 1441 in the data structure 1422 is information on the imaging device 106, and the cooperative shooting information 1442 is information on the imaging device 107.

  Next, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of the shooting apparatuses 107 and 108 instructs the communication unit 206 to transmit a registration completion notification, and the communication unit 206 transmits this to the shooting apparatus 106 (S413). Finally, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of the shooting apparatuses 107 and 108 instructs the communication unit 206 to switch to the infrastructure mode. Then, the communication unit 206 ends the connection in the ad hoc mode of the wireless LAN, switches to the infrastructure mode, and connects to the wireless access point 109 (S414).

  The description is moved to FIG. 5, and when the cooperative photographing management unit 204 of the photographing apparatus 106 receives a registration completion notification from all transmission destinations of the cooperative photographing information (S507), “cooperative photographing” is set as the current apparatus state in the nonvolatile memory. (S508). Finally, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of the shooting apparatus 106 instructs the communication unit 206 to switch to the infrastructure mode, and the communication unit 206 ends the connection in the ad hoc mode of the wireless LAN and switches to the infrastructure mode to perform wireless access. Connect to the point (S509). With the above processing, the cooperative shooting setting in the cooperative shooting system according to the present embodiment is completed.

(Cooperative shooting request)
Next, a specific flow of the photographing request process will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. FIG. 6 shows the processing of the photographing request source, and FIG. 7 shows the processing of the photographing request destination. The imaging request in this embodiment is, for example, a request from one imaging device to another imaging device for imaging a specified subject. In order to request imaging, it is a precondition that the above-described cooperative imaging setting is completed in each imaging apparatus. Communication with the wireless access point 109 needs to be established. Here, a case will be described as an example in which the imaging device 106 requests imaging as a request source, but it is possible to perform imaging requests as request sources from other imaging devices 107 and 108 by a similar procedure.

  First, in the photographing apparatus 106, the photographer A photographs a subject that the other photographer wants to request photographing (S601). Here, it is assumed that a subject whose subject information is registered in advance in the subject recognition unit 205 is photographed. When the imaging data is delivered from the imaging element 202 to the subject recognition unit 205, the subject recognition unit 205 recognizes the subject with reference to the subject information registered in advance (S602). A feature amount of the subject is registered in advance as subject information. If the subject can be recognized by comparison with the feature amount extracted at the time of shooting (S603-Yes), the matched subject information is transferred to the cooperative shooting management unit 204 (S604). On the other hand, if the subject cannot be recognized, the process ends (S603-No).

  The cooperative shooting management unit 204 that has received the subject information accesses the nonvolatile memory 207 to acquire the current apparatus state (S605). If the current apparatus state is “cooperative shooting” indicating that the coordinated shooting setting process is completed and the coordinated shooting is possible (S606-Yes), the process proceeds to step S607. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S606 that the current apparatus state is not “cooperative shooting” (S606-No), the process ends.

  In the shooting request process in step S607, first, the subject information passed from the subject recognition unit 205 is compared with the subject information transmitted to another imaging device in the cooperative shooting setting (S607). If the comparison results do not match (S607-No), the process ends. In this embodiment, since there is only one subject information registered in the subject recognition unit 205, a consistent result is always obtained in the comparison in step S607.

  If the comparison results match (S607-Yes), then the cooperative shooting management unit 204 performs a shooting request transmission process to another shooting device. First, the cooperative shooting information recorded in the nonvolatile memory 207 is read, and a fixed IP address is acquired from the cooperative shooting information (S608). Next, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 generates message information (hereinafter referred to as a shooting request message) (S609). Here, the cooperative photographing management unit 204 includes the fixed IP address of the requesting photographing apparatus 106 and the subject information recognized in step S602 in the photographing request message. When the shooting request message is generated, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 instructs the communication unit 206 to transmit the shooting request message to the address (fixed IP address) acquired in step S608, and the communication unit 206 transmits the message (S610). ).

  The explanation is moved to FIG. 7, and when the imaging devices 107 and 108 receive the imaging request message, the communication unit 206 of the imaging devices 107 and 108 notifies the cooperative imaging management unit 204 of the reception of the imaging request message (S701). Then, the cooperative photographing management unit 204 displays the reception of the photographing request message on the display unit 208 and notifies the photographer (S702). When the photographer of the photographing apparatuses 107 and 108 instructs the confirmation of the photographing request message via the operation unit 209 (S703), the cooperative photographing management unit 204 displays the subject information included in the photographing request message on the display unit 208. Then, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 inquires of the photographer as to whether to accept / reject / hold the shooting request as a shooting request processing method (S704). FIG. 15A shows a display example of the inquiry screen. On the inquiry screen, selection buttons 1501 to 1503 for selecting any one of acceptance (acceptance) / rejection / holding of photographing requests are displayed. The photographer of the photographing apparatuses 107 and 108 can determine the processing method of the photographing request by selecting one of the selection buttons 1501 to 1503.

  When the photographer selects the selection button 1501 and gives an instruction to accept the shooting request (S705-Yes), the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of the shooting apparatuses 107 and 108 generates a shooting request response message indicating the shooting request acceptance. Then, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 instructs the communication unit 206 to transmit a shooting request response message to the shooting device 106 that has transmitted the shooting request message (S706). Next, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 checks the activation mode of the shooting apparatus, and if not in the shooting mode, displays a message requesting the photographer to switch to the shooting mode (S707, S708). When the photographer sets the photographing apparatus to the photographing mode (S709-Yes), the cooperative photographing management unit 204 records “Requested photographing” in the nonvolatile memory as the current apparatus state (S710). Further, the photographing request message received from the photographing apparatus 106 is recorded in the non-volatile memory as “consent information” (S711), and the process is terminated. Here, FIG. 15B shows a data structure of “consent information”. The acceptance information includes the number of acceptance information 1511, the requesting source fixed IP address 1512, and subject information 1513.

  On the other hand, when the photographer instructs to reject the shooting request (S712-Yes), the cooperative shooting management unit 204 generates a shooting request response message indicating rejection and transmits the shooting request message to the shooting device 106 that is the transmission source of the shooting request message ( S713), the process ends. In step S703, if the photographer does not confirm the shooting request message after a certain time has elapsed after receiving the shooting request message (S714-Yes), a shooting request response message indicating rejection is automatically sent. It is also possible to transmit (S713).

  On the other hand, when the photographer instructs to hold (S715-Yes), the cooperative shooting management unit 204 records the shooting request message as “holding information” in the non-volatile memory (S716), and ends the process. Here, when the photographer instructs confirmation of the photographing request message in a state where “holding information” is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 207, the cooperative photographing management unit 204 reads the holding information from the nonvolatile memory 207 and performs the above-described confirmation processing. It becomes possible to do.

  Returning to FIG. 6, when the photographing apparatus 106 receives a photographing request response message from the photographing apparatuses 107 and 108 (S611-Yes), the communication unit 206 of the photographing apparatus 106 notifies the cooperative photographing management unit 204 that the message has been received. (S611). Next, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 determines the content of the shooting request response message (S612). If the determination result of the shooting request response message is approval, in order to obtain video data from the requested shooting device after shooting is completed, the fixed IP address of the shooting device that is the transmission source of the shooting request response message is set to “Requested shooting”. Device "is stored in the nonvolatile memory (S612). By storing the fixed IP address in the non-volatile memory, it is possible to identify the imaging device that has accepted the cooperative imaging. On the other hand, if the determination result of the photographing request response message is rejection, the process is terminated. The cooperative shooting management unit 204 can display the content of the shooting request response message on the display unit 208 to notify the photographer of the content of the shooting request response message. With the above processing, the photographing request processing in the cooperative photographing system according to the present embodiment is completed.

  Here, only the case where the photographing apparatus 106 makes a photographing request has been described, but it is also possible to simultaneously accept photographing requests from a plurality of photographing apparatuses. It is also possible for an imaging device “in request shooting” to send an imaging request to another imaging device.

(Processing during shooting)
In an imaging apparatus whose apparatus status is “Requesting imaging”, the cooperative imaging management unit 204 displays the subject information recorded in the non-volatile memory 207 as “acknowledgment information” on the display unit 208, for example, cooperative imaging to the user. Encourage the user to shoot the subject.

  As described above, in this embodiment, when shooting a specific subject using a plurality of cameras, the user of each camera is notified of information about the subject to be shot and the timing of shooting, thereby obtaining a desired video. It is possible to efficiently shoot without missing. As a result, it is possible to efficiently shoot images of various angles and compositions using a plurality of imaging devices. In addition, when the photographing device recognizes the subject that requested the photographing, the photographing request is automatically transmitted, and after performing the cooperative photographing setting, it is possible to request the photographing without performing troublesome operations. The photographer can concentrate on shooting.

(Second Embodiment)
In the first embodiment, the method of using the subject name for the cooperative shooting information exchanged when the cooperative shooting setting is described. In the present embodiment, the feature amount of the subject is used as the cooperative shooting information. Here, various methods can be used for the description of the feature amount of the subject, but it is assumed that the cooperative photographing request source and the requesting photographing device can handle the subject feature amount by the same method. As in the first embodiment, in this embodiment, it is assumed that the subject feature amount is registered in advance in the subject recognition unit 205 as subject information. Note that it is also possible to combine subject feature amounts and subject names as subject information.

  Since the cooperative shooting setting process and the shooting request process in this embodiment basically conform to the process of the first embodiment except that the data included in the cooperative shooting information is different, detailed description thereof will be omitted. When the imaging request process is completed in the present embodiment, the feature amount of the subject is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 207 as “acceptance information” in the imaging apparatus that has accepted the imaging request.

  Next, the photographing process in this embodiment will be described. When shooting is performed during “request shooting”, the subject recognition unit 205 recognizes the subject in the captured video data using the feature amount of the subject recorded as “acceptance information”. If the subject can be recognized, the requesting photographing apparatus recorded in the “acceptance information” is notified that the requested subject has been photographed. When the subject name is used together, the subject name metadata can be added to the captured video data.

  Further, when the subject can be recognized during focusing or framing, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 displays the recognition result on the display unit 208 of the shooting device, and the photographer can take a photo of the requested subject. It is also possible to notify. It is also possible to present a shooting hint to the photographer using the recognition result of the subject.

  An example of presenting an imaging hint using a subject recognition result will be described. First, when the subject can be recognized by another photographing apparatus, the cooperative photographing management unit 204 measures the ratio (area ratio) of the region of the subject to the frame of the display unit 208, and the communication unit 206 uses the cooperative photographing management unit 204. The measurement result is notified to one photographing apparatus together with subject information.

  Next, in the one photographing apparatus that has received the notification, the cooperative photographing management unit 204 measures the ratio (area ratio) of the subject recognized by the subject recognition unit 205 to the frame of the display unit 208, and the measured ratio ( The area ratio is compared with the notified ratio (area ratio). When the difference value between the two ratios (area ratios) is equal to or smaller than a predetermined threshold, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of one shooting apparatus determines that shooting with a similar composition is being performed by another shooting apparatus. In order to shoot a subject with various variations, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of one shooting apparatus generates a change notification message instructing a change of composition (change of ratio), and the communication unit 206 transmits the generated message. To do. The communication unit 206 of the other photographing apparatus that has received this message notifies the cooperative photographing management unit 204, and the cooperative photographing management unit 204 displays a message that suggests a composition change on the display unit 208 to the photographer. A photographer of another photographing apparatus that has confirmed this message can photograph the subject with various variations by photographing the subject while changing the composition.

  According to the present embodiment, it is possible to recognize the subject requested to be photographed by the photographing apparatus as the request destination. Since it becomes possible to confirm at the time of shooting whether or not the requested photographer has photographed the requested subject, it is possible to reduce the risk of missing the shooting by the requested photographer. In addition, it becomes possible for the requesting photographer to check in real time whether the subject requested to be photographed is actually photographed. The requesting photographer who has confirmed that the missed shooting can be avoided can, for example, challenge the shooting with a high degree of difficulty with peace of mind. Furthermore, by suggesting the photographer to change the composition, it is possible to suppress photographing of similar images by a plurality of photographing devices, and to shoot subjects with many variations.

(Third embodiment)
In the second embodiment, the configuration has been described in which the feature amount of the subject requested to be photographed is sent from the requesting photographing apparatus to the requesting photographing apparatus at the time of cooperative photographing setting. In the present embodiment, a configuration will be described in which a subject is photographed by a requesting photographing apparatus, and a feature amount of the subject is extracted by the requesting photographing apparatus.

  A specific flow of the cooperative shooting setting process in the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The cooperative shooting setting process basically conforms to the process flow of the first embodiment, but differs in that steps S801 to S804 are added as a process following the process of step S411 of FIG. First, the cooperative photographing management unit 204 of the requested photographing apparatus displays a message for prompting photographing of the requested subject on the display unit 208 (S801). When the photographer shoots the subject (S802-Yes), the cooperative shooting management unit 204 gives the shooting data to the subject recognition unit 205 and instructs to extract the feature amount of the subject. Upon receiving this instruction, the subject recognition unit 205 extracts the feature amount of the subject from the shooting data (S803). When the subject recognition unit 205 extracts the feature amount of the subject, the feature amount extracted by the cooperative shooting management unit 204 is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 207 as subject information included in the “acceptance information” (S804). Subsequent processes are the same as those in the first embodiment following step S412, and thus the description thereof is omitted.

  According to the present embodiment, the subject can be recognized even if the subject recognition method is different between the photographing devices used for cooperative photographing by photographing the subject with each photographing device and extracting the feature amount of the subject.

(Fourth embodiment)
In the third embodiment, the process of capturing a subject with the requested imaging device and extracting the feature amount of the subject in the captured video data has been described. However, in the present embodiment, shooting is requested in the cooperative shooting setting process. Video data showing a subject to be photographed is sent as cooperative shooting information. When the imaging device that requested cooperative shooting transmits information for performing cooperative shooting (cooperative shooting information), video data (still image or still image) showing the subject is used as subject information for specifying the subject for cooperative shooting. Video) together with the fixed IP address to the requested photographing apparatus. As the video data used as the cooperative shooting information, information registered in advance in the subject recognition unit 205 can be used. Since the cooperative shooting setting process using video data as the cooperative shooting information conforms to the process of the above-described embodiment, the description thereof is omitted.

  According to the present embodiment, even if the subject to be photographed is not ready for photographing at the time of cooperative photographing setting, the subject photographing apparatus can recognize the subject by sending the video data from the requesting source. In addition, since the feature quantity of the subject is extracted from the video data by the requested photographing device, the subject can be recognized even if the subject recognition method differs between the photographing devices.

(Fifth embodiment)
In the previous embodiment, the example in which the subject name, the feature amount of the subject, and the video data in which the subject is photographed is used as subject information in the process of requesting cooperative shooting. In the present embodiment, an example in which subject position information is used as subject information will be described.

  The functional configuration of the image capturing apparatuses 106 to 108 will be described with reference to FIG. It is not necessary for all the photographing apparatuses to have the same configuration, but it is assumed here that all the imaging apparatuses have the same configuration for simplicity. The same components as those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals. 9 has a position detection unit 910 and a direction detection unit 911 in addition to the configuration of FIG. The position detection unit 910 may have any configuration capable of receiving GPS data. For example, a GPS unit can be used. As the direction detection unit 911, for example, an electronic compass can be used.

  Next, a specific flow of the imaging request process in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. First, a subject to be photographed is photographed by the requesting photographing apparatus (S1001). When photographing is performed, the lens unit 201 measures the distance to the subject and records the distance measurement result in the nonvolatile memory 207 (S1002).

  Next, the position detection unit 910 calculates the latitude and longitude of the position of the photographing apparatus from the received GPS data, and records the calculation result in the nonvolatile memory 207 (S1003). Further, the direction detection unit 911 detects the shooting direction of the shooting apparatus, and records the detection result in the nonvolatile memory 207 (S1004). When the above information is recorded, the cooperative photographing management unit 204 calculates the subject position using the distance from the photographing device to the subject, the positional information of the photographing device, and the information on the photographing direction of the photographing device (S1005). Here, since latitude and longitude are used as the position of the photographing apparatus, the subject position is also expressed as latitude and longitude. Subsequently, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 generates a shooting request message including the latitude / longitude information of the calculated subject position (S1006). Subsequent processing is the same as in the first embodiment following step S610 in FIG.

  A shooting request message including information indicating the position of the subject in the shooting area obtained by the processing of FIG. 10 (latitude and longitude information of the subject position) is transmitted from the requesting shooting apparatus to the requesting shooting apparatus. The cooperative shooting management unit 204 of the requested shooting apparatus includes the latitude / longitude information of the subject position included in the shooting request message and the position information of the shooting apparatus within the shooting area detected by the position detection unit 910 of the shooting apparatus. And compare. Note that the position information of the self-photographing apparatus can be detected using the position detection unit 910 and the direction detection unit 911. Based on the comparison result, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 of the requested shooting apparatus can obtain the relative positional relationship in the shooting area between the position of the own shooting apparatus and the position of the subject. Then, the requested imaging device that has received the imaging request message displays a message prompting the photographer to confirm the message, as in the first embodiment. Here, in the present embodiment, the subject position reflecting the comparison result of the latitude and longitude information is presented to the photographer. As a method for presenting the subject position, the collaborative photographing management unit 204 uses the comparison result between the latitude / longitude information of the subject position and the latitude / longitude information of the self-photographing device (requested photographing device). Display control for displaying a specific positional relationship on the display unit 208 is possible. In addition, a method of displaying the subject position from the latitude / longitude information on a map showing a photographing area where the subject is photographed, a method of displaying an instruction indicating the direction of the subject to be photographed on the finder of the photographing device, and the like are used. Can do. FIG. 15C shows an example of guidance display. A display example 1521 shows a case where the relative position between the subject position and the requested photographing apparatus is shown on the map. Display example 1522 shows a case in which the direction of the subject to be photographed is indicated by an arrow on the finder of the photographing apparatus. Since the processing after confirming the photographing request message is processing according to the processing of the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted here.

  According to the present embodiment, it is possible to notify the photographer who is the photographing request destination of the position of the subject to be photographed. As a result, it is possible to reduce the risk that the requesting photographer will not be able to find the subject and miss it, and the subject can be reliably photographed.

(Sixth embodiment)
In the above-described shooting request procedure of the first embodiment, the requesting photographer takes a picture of a subject, and notifies the shooting request when the subject is recognized. In the present embodiment, a shooting request is made according to an explicit instruction from the photographer, regardless of when the subject is recognized. With reference to FIG. 11, a specific flow of the imaging request process in the present embodiment will be described.

  First, the requesting photographer instructs the start of shooting request setting through the operation unit 209 (S1101). The cooperative photographing management unit 204 reads out the subject information notified to the requesting photographing apparatus during the cooperative photographing setting from the nonvolatile memory 207 (S1102), and displays it on the display unit 208 (S1103). The photographer selects a subject to be photographed from the subject information displayed on the display unit 208 and instructs the photographing request transmission (S1104). When the shooting request transmission is instructed, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 generates a shooting request message including subject information of the selected subject (S1105). Since the subsequent processing is the same as the processing after step S610 in FIG. 6 of the first embodiment, the description thereof is omitted here.

  According to the present embodiment, it is possible to make a shooting request even when the requesting photographer cannot shoot the subject.

(Seventh embodiment)
In the above-described embodiment, it has been described that the photographing request is performed by the photographing apparatus used by the requesting photographer, but the gist of the present invention is not limited to this example, and other photographers The imaging device used by may transmit an imaging request. Since the procedures described in the above-described imaging request procedure that have been described as being performed by the requesting imaging apparatus may be read as if they were performed by another imaging apparatus, description thereof is omitted here.

  According to the present embodiment, it is possible to share a shutter chance that the requesting photographer is not aware of, and to reduce the risk of missing a desired subject.

(Eighth embodiment)
In the cooperative shooting setting procedure of the first embodiment described above, the configuration example in which the cooperative shooting setting is performed by sequentially pairing with the shooting device discovered by the wireless LAN module of the communication unit 206 has been described. In the present embodiment, pairing of an image capturing apparatus that performs cooperative shooting setting using an acceleration sensor is performed. The functional configuration of the imaging devices 106 to 108 will be described with reference to FIG. It is not necessary for all the photographing apparatuses to have the same configuration, but it is assumed here that all the imaging apparatuses have the same configuration for simplicity. The same components as those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals. The functional configuration shown in FIG. 12 includes an acceleration sensor 1201 in addition to the configuration of FIG.

  Next, a specific flow of the cooperative shooting setting process in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. First, the photographer instructs the start of cooperative shooting setting (S1301). When the cooperative shooting setting is started, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 activates the acceleration sensor 1201 (S1302). Then, the cooperative photographing management unit 204 generates an instruction so that the photographing devices lightly collide (contact) the photographing devices with each other, and the display unit 208 displays this instruction (S1303). According to the instruction of the photographer, the photographing devices lightly collide with each other and the photographing device vibrates. When the acceleration sensor 1201 detects a change in acceleration exceeding a predetermined threshold (S1304), it notifies the cooperative shooting management unit 204 (S1305). Upon receiving the notification from the acceleration sensor 1201, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 records “waiting for reception of a pairing request message” in the nonvolatile memory 207 as the current device state (S1306).

  Next, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 sets a random reception waiting time (S1307). When the communication unit 206 receives a pairing request message from another imaging device during the waiting time (S1308-NO, S1309-Yes), a pairing completion notification is transmitted to the imaging device that is the transmission source of the pairing request message (S1310). ). The cooperative shooting management unit 204 cancels the “waiting for reception of a pairing request message” state (S1311). Then, cooperative shooting information is transmitted and received between the shooting device that is the transmission source of the pairing request message and the shooting device that is the reception destination according to the same procedure as in the first embodiment (S407). On the other hand, if the waiting time elapses without receiving the pairing request message within the reception waiting time (S1308-Yes), the cooperative photographing management unit 204 instructs the communication unit 206 to transmit the pairing request message, and the communication unit This is transmitted (S1312). When a pairing request message is received by the imaging device in the “waiting to receive a pairing request message” state, the same as in the first embodiment, between the imaging device that is the transmission source of the pairing request message and the imaging device that is the reception destination The coordinated shooting information is transmitted / received according to the procedure (S407).

  According to the present embodiment, it is possible to pair an imaging device that performs cooperative shooting settings using an acceleration sensor, regardless of the order of pairing with the imaging device discovered by the wireless LAN module of the communication unit 206 in order. become.

(Ninth embodiment)
In the eighth embodiment, the procedure for performing pairing by directly transmitting and receiving messages between the imaging devices has been described. In this embodiment, a configuration example in which pairing is performed via the server 105 will be described. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that settings (server address, service account, etc.) for connecting to a service on the server are registered in advance in the photographing apparatus that performs cooperative photographing settings. In addition to the configuration of FIG. 12, the imaging apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a position detection unit. Further, it is assumed that each photographing apparatus is connected to the wireless access point in the infrastructure mode. On the other hand, it is assumed that a service for performing pairing of the photographing apparatus is executed on the server 105.

  Similarly to the eighth embodiment, when collaborative shooting setting is started and the imaging devices are lightly collided with each other, the acceleration sensor 1201 detects the vibration of the imaging device and records vibration waveform data, which is used as waveform information for cooperative shooting. Notify the management unit 204. Upon receiving the notification, the cooperative shooting management unit 204 acquires the current time, and further acquires position information of the shooting apparatus from the position detection unit. The cooperative shooting management unit 204 that has acquired the waveform information, the current time, and the position information transmits a pairing request message including these pieces of information as device identification information to the service on the server 105. The server 105 that has received the pairing request message extracts the device identification information included in the message and compares it with the device identification information extracted from the pairing request message received from another imaging device. When device identification information having all values of waveform information, current time, and position information that are closer than a predetermined threshold is found, the transmission source photographing devices are paired.

  Subsequently, a response message including the fixed IP address of the paired image capturing apparatus is notified to each image capturing apparatus. The imaging device that has received the response message from the server 105 acquires a fixed IP address from the response message, connects to the imaging device with the acquired fixed IP address, and transmits and receives cooperative imaging information. Since the subsequent processing is the same as the processing after step S407 in FIG. 4 of the first embodiment, description thereof will be omitted. It is also possible for the photographing apparatus to transmit the pairing request message including the cooperative photographing information to the server, and for the server to transmit the pairing partner's cooperative photographing information in the response message. In this procedure, since the exchange of cooperative shooting information is completed when the message transmission / reception with the server is completed, communication between the shooting apparatuses is not necessary.

(10th Embodiment)
In the above-described embodiment, the cooperative photographing setting is performed using only the photographing device. However, the gist of the present invention is not limited to this configuration example. For example, the cooperative photographing is performed via a PC or terminal equipped with a wireless LAN. It is also possible to perform shooting settings. In that case, it is necessary that a device and software necessary for executing the cooperative shooting setting described above be installed in the PC and the terminal. The cooperative shooting setting can be executed between the PC or the terminal in which the cooperative shooting setting is activated in the reception mode and the imaging apparatus in which the cooperative shooting setting is activated in the transmission mode. According to the present embodiment, for example, an effect is expected in a case where cooperative shooting is performed by a large number of users participating in an event. By installing the above-described PC or terminal at the event venue, the user does not need to search for a partner to perform cooperative shooting setting, and can easily perform cooperative shooting setting even for a large number of people.

(Eleventh embodiment)
In the above-described embodiment, the wireless LAN is activated in the ad hoc mode when performing the cooperative shooting setting. However, the gist of the present invention is not limited to this configuration example, and the wireless LAN is activated in the infrastructure mode to cooperate. It is also possible to perform shooting settings. At this time, as a method of designating a partner photographing apparatus for cooperative photographing setting, a method of selecting a transmission destination photographing apparatus by a requesting photographing apparatus can be used. Alternatively, it is possible to use a method in which a requesting photographing apparatus broadcasts a cooperative photographing setting start request message and the requesting photographing apparatus that has received the message selects the requesting photographing apparatus.

(Twelfth embodiment)
In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the photographing apparatus that has received the photographing request message notifies the photographer by displaying message reception on the display unit has been described. The gist of the present invention is not limited to this example. For example, depending on the apparatus state of the photographing apparatus at the time of message reception (such as a viewfinder photographing mode, a live view photographing mode, and a viewing mode), for example, voice, vibration, and LED lamp It is also possible to notify the photographer using.

(Other examples)
The present invention can also be realized by executing the following processing. That is, software (program) that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or apparatus via a network or various storage media, and a computer (or CPU, MPU, or the like) of the system or apparatus reads the program. It is a process to be executed.

  According to the above-described embodiment, when photographing a specific subject using a plurality of photographing devices, the user of each photographing device is informed of the subject to be photographed and the timing of photographing so that a desired image can be obtained. It is possible to efficiently shoot without missing.

Claims (12)

A photographing system capable of photographing a subject by cooperative photographing in which a plurality of photographing devices that can communicate via a network cooperates,
One imaging device constituting the plurality of imaging devices is
Holding means for receiving and holding network addresses set in other imaging devices constituting the plurality of imaging devices;
Recognizing means for recognizing whether a subject photographed by the photographing means is a subject to be subjected to cooperative photographing in the one photographing device by comparison with registered subject information;
Message information including subject information of the photographed subject and a network address set in the one photographing device when the photographed subject is recognized by the recognition means as the subject of the cooperative photographing. Is transmitted to the other photographing apparatus using the network address held by the holding means, and requesting means for requesting the start of the cooperative shooting,
Other imaging devices constituting the plurality of imaging devices are:
Receiving means for receiving the message information;
Selecting means for displaying the subject information included in the message information received by the receiving means and accepting a selection as to whether or not to accept the request for starting cooperative shooting from the one imaging device;
A notification means for notifying the selection result of the selection means to the one photographing device specified by the network address included in the message information;
An imaging system comprising: The one photographing device is:
Means for receiving the selection result notified from the notification means;
And a determination unit that determines whether the received selection result is acceptance or rejection of the request for starting cooperative shooting. The holding unit further includes a determination result of the determination unit when the determination result of the determination unit starts. 2. The imaging system according to claim 1, wherein the network address of the other imaging device is stored to identify the imaging device that has accepted the cooperative imaging.   The imaging system according to claim 2, wherein the one imaging apparatus further includes a display unit that displays a determination result of the determination unit. The one photographing device is:
Means for measuring a distance from the one photographing device to the subject;
Position detecting means for calculating position information of the one photographing device in a photographing region for photographing from received GPS data;
Direction detecting means for detecting a shooting direction of the one shooting apparatus with respect to the subject;
Calculating means for calculating the position of the subject in the shooting region to be shot using the distance to the subject, the position information of the one shooting device, and the shooting direction information of the one shooting device;
The imaging system according to claim 1, further comprising:   5. The photographing system according to claim 4, wherein the subject information of the photographed subject included in the message information includes information indicating the position of the subject calculated by the calculating unit. The other photographing device is:
Means for calculating position information of the other photographing device in the photographing region where photographing is performed from received GPS data;
A comparison unit that compares the calculated position information of the other photographing device with information indicating the position of the subject included in the message information;
Display control means for displaying a relative position between the position of the other photographing device and the position of the subject according to the comparison result of the comparison means;
The imaging system according to claim 4, further comprising: The other photographing device is:
Means for measuring the proportion of the subject to be cooperatively photographed in the frame of the display means;
A ratio notifying means for notifying the one photographing apparatus of the measured ratio;
The imaging system according to claim 1, further comprising: The one photographing device is:
Measuring means for measuring the proportion of the subject to be cooperatively photographed in the frame of the display means;
If the difference between the ratio measured by the measuring means and the ratio notified by the ratio notifying means is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, a message for instructing the change of the ratio in the other imaging device Change notification means for notifying other imaging devices;
The imaging system according to claim 7, further comprising:   The program for functioning a computer as each means of the imaging | photography system of any one of Claims 1 thru | or 8. A shooting control method executed by a shooting system capable of shooting a subject by cooperative shooting in which a plurality of shooting apparatuses capable of communicating via a network cooperates,
A holding step in which a holding unit of one imaging apparatus constituting the plurality of imaging apparatuses receives and holds a network address set in another imaging apparatus constituting the plurality of imaging apparatuses;
The recognition means of the one photographing device recognizes whether or not the subject photographed by the photographing means is a subject to be subjected to cooperative photographing in the one photographing device by comparison with registered subject information. Recognition process;
Message information including subject information of the photographed subject and a network address set in the one photographing device when the photographed subject is recognized as the subject of the cooperative photographing in the recognition step. Is transmitted to the other photographing device using the network address held by the holding step, and the requesting step in which the requesting unit of the one photographing device requests the start of the cooperative photographing,
A receiving step of receiving the message information by the receiving means of the other imaging device constituting the plurality of imaging devices;
Whether the selection unit of the other imaging apparatus displays the subject information included in the message information received in the reception step and accepts the request for starting the cooperative imaging from the one imaging apparatus A selection process for accepting the selection,
A notification step of notifying the other imaging device of the selection result of the selection step to the one imaging device specified by the network address included in the message information;
An imaging control method comprising: An imaging apparatus that constitutes an imaging system capable of imaging a subject by cooperative imaging in which a plurality of imaging apparatuses that can communicate via a network cooperates,
Holding means for receiving and holding network addresses set in other imaging devices constituting the plurality of imaging devices;
Recognizing means for recognizing whether a subject photographed by the photographing means is a subject to be subjected to cooperative photographing by comparison with registered subject information;
Message information including subject information of the photographed subject and a network address set in the photographing device when the photographed subject is recognized as the subject of the cooperative photographing by the recognition unit, Request means for requesting the start of the cooperative shooting by transmitting to the other imaging device using the network address held by the holding means;
An imaging apparatus comprising: An imaging apparatus that constitutes an imaging system capable of imaging a subject by cooperative imaging in which a plurality of imaging apparatuses that can communicate via a network cooperates,
Receiving means for receiving message information including subject information of a subject photographed by another photographing device and a network address set in the other photographing device as a request for starting cooperative photographing;
Selecting means for displaying the subject information included in the message information received by the receiving means and accepting a selection as to whether or not to accept the request for starting cooperative shooting from the other imaging device;
Notifying means for notifying the other photographing device specified by the network address included in the message information of the selection result of the selecting means;
An imaging apparatus comprising:

Images