JP3702350B2 - Digital camera and recording medium - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to digital camera technology, and more particularly to an improvement related to the number of pixels of a captured image.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In recent years, instead of conventional silver salt film cameras, an optical image from a subject is converted into an electric image signal by an image sensor, and each electric image signal is converted into a magnetic disk corresponding to a conventional film or a detachable card type semiconductor. Digital cameras that record on a recording medium such as a memory have been put into practical use.
[0003]
In addition, as the number of pixels of the image sensor increases, a digital camera that can acquire a high-definition image and can provide an image size with a number of pixels smaller than the number of pixels of the image sensor has been put into practical use in response to a photographer's request. Yes.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, since the size of the captured image acquired by the high-pixel image sensor increases, the acquisition time of the captured image becomes longer, and the image processing time for converting to an image of the designated number of pixels selected by the photographer becomes longer. . Therefore, when the photographer requests high-speed shooting such as continuous shooting, it is difficult to obtain an image with the selected designated number of pixels.
[0005]
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a digital camera technique capable of obtaining an image having a specified number of pixels according to a photographer's request.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above problems, the invention of claim 1 is a digital camera, wherein (a) an image signal having a first pixel number and an image signal having a second pixel number smaller than the first pixel number are selected. Imaging means that can be generated automatically, (b) setting means capable of setting an image size relating to a specified number of pixels smaller than the first number of pixels, and (c) a first for an image signal of the first number of pixels. First conversion means for performing image processing and converting the image signal to the specified number of pixels; and (d) performing second image processing on the image signal having the second number of pixels and converting the image signal to the specified number of pixels. Second conversion means for conversion; and (e) generation means for generating image signals of the specified number of pixels by selectively activating the first conversion means and the second conversion means.
[0007]
Further, the invention of claim 2 is the digital camera according to the invention of claim 1, wherein the imaging means has (a-1) continuous shooting means for continuously generating image signals for recording, (E-1) When the acquisition interval of the image signal for recording by the continuous shooting unit is shorter than a predetermined time interval, the generation unit selects the second conversion unit and selects the designated number of pixels. Means for generating the image signal.
[0008]
The invention of claim 3 is the digital camera according to claim 1 or claim 2, further comprising (f) an input means capable of inputting a predetermined operation, wherein the generation means comprises (e-2 And a means for selecting the first conversion means or the second conversion means in accordance with the predetermined operation input and generating an image signal of the designated number of pixels.
[0009]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the digital camera according to any one of the first to third aspects of the present invention, the first image processing is pixel synthesis processing accompanied with a reduction in image size.
[0010]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the digital camera according to any one of the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, the second image processing is pixel interpolation processing accompanied by an increase in image size.
[0011]
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, a program for functioning the digital camera as any one of the first to fifth aspects is recorded by being installed in a microcomputer built in the digital camera. are doing.
[0012]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
<Main components of digital camera>
1 to 4 are diagrams showing a configuration of a main part of a digital camera 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a front view, FIG. 2 is a rear view, FIG. 3 is a side view, and FIG. It corresponds to. These figures are not necessarily in accordance with the triangulation method, and are mainly intended to conceptually illustrate the main configuration of the digital camera 1.
[0013]
As shown in FIG. 1, the digital camera 1 includes a box-shaped camera body 2 and a rectangular parallelepiped imaging unit 3 (shown by a thick line). The imaging unit 3 is provided with an imaging circuit including a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) color area sensor at an appropriate position behind a zoom lens with a macro function, which is an imaging lens. Similar to the silver salt lens shutter camera, a light control circuit including a light control sensor 305 for receiving reflected light from a subject of flash light and an optical viewfinder 31 are provided at appropriate positions in the imaging unit 3. .
[0014]
On the other hand, in the imaging unit main body 3, a zoom motor M1 for changing the zoom ratio of the zoom lens, a housing position, a lens movement between the imaging positions, a motor M2 for focusing, and a diaphragm are provided. A motor M3 for adjustment is provided.
[0015]
On the front surface of the camera main body 2, a grip portion 4 is provided at an appropriate position at the left end, an internal flash 5 is provided at an upper appropriate position in the center, and a shutter button 9 is provided on the upper surface of the camera main body 2.
[0016]
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, a liquid crystal display (LCD: Liquid Crystal) for displaying a captured image on a monitor (corresponding to a viewfinder), reproducing a recorded image, and the like at the back of the camera body 2. Display) 10 is provided. A key switch group 26 for operating the digital camera and a power switch 27 are provided below the LCD 10. At the left end of the power switch 27, an LED 281 that is turned on when the power is turned on, and an LED 282 that displays a status of accessing the memory card are provided.
[0017]
Furthermore, a shooting / playback mode setting switch 14 for switching between “shooting mode” and “playback mode” is provided on the back of the camera body 2. The shooting mode is a mode for taking a picture, and the playback mode is a mode for playing back and displaying the shot image recorded on the memory card 8 on the LCD 10. The shooting / playback mode setting switch 14 is composed of a three-contact slide switch. For example, the shooting mode is set when set down, the playback mode is set when set at the center, and the menu mode is set when set up.
[0018]
Further, a quadruple switch 28 is provided on the right side of the back of the camera. When the buttons 281 and 282 are pressed, zooming is performed by driving the zoom motor M1, and exposure correction is performed by pressing the buttons 283 and 284. I do.
[0019]
In FIG. 2, an LCD button 32 for turning on / off the LCD display is provided on the back side of the imaging unit 3, and the on / off state of the LCD display is switched each time the LCD button 32 is pressed. For example, when photographing using only the optical viewfinder 31, the LCD display is turned off for the purpose of power saving. At the time of macro photography, by pressing the macro button 33, the focus motor M2 is driven and the lens 301 becomes ready for macro photography.
[0020]
As shown in the side view of FIG. 3, a DC input terminal 29 is provided on the side surface of the digital camera 1.
[0021]
As shown in FIG. 4, a battery filling chamber 18 and a card filling chamber 17 for the memory card 8 are provided on the bottom surface of the camera body 2, and the filling port is closed by a clamshell type lid 15. It has become. The digital camera 1 uses a power source battery E formed by connecting four AA batteries in series as a drive source.
[0022]
<Functional block of digital camera 1>
FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram of the digital camera 1.
[0023]
First, an internal block of the imaging unit 3 will be described.
[0024]
The CCD 303 is composed of a light image of a subject formed by the lens 301 and an image signal of R (red), G (green), and B (blue) color components (a signal sequence of pixel signals received by each pixel). Signal) is photoelectrically converted and output. The CCD 303 can acquire a photographed image having a first pixel number of 1200 × 900 (1,080,000 pixels) corresponding to all pixels, and a second pixel number of 400 × 300 (120,000 pixels) by thinning-out readout, which will be described in detail later. Captured images can be acquired.
[0025]
The exposure control in the imaging unit 3 is performed by adjusting the diaphragm 302 and adjusting the exposure amount of the CCD 303, that is, the charge accumulation time of the CCD 303 corresponding to the shutter speed. If the appropriate aperture and shutter speed cannot be set when the subject contrast is low, improper exposure due to underexposure is corrected by adjusting the level of the image signal output from the CCD 303. That is, at the time of low contrast, exposure control is performed by combining the aperture, shutter speed, and gain adjustment. The level adjustment of the image signal is performed in the gain adjustment of the AGC circuit 313b in the signal processing circuit 313.
[0026]
The timing generator (TG) 314 generates a drive control signal for the CCD 303 based on the reference clock transmitted from the timing control circuit 202. The timing generator 314 generates, for example, a clock signal such as an integration start / end (exposure start / end) timing signal, a light reception signal read control signal (horizontal synchronization signal, vertical synchronization signal, transfer signal, etc.) of each pixel. , Output to the CCD 303. In the continuous shooting mode in which continuous shooting is performed on the subject, a drive control signal is transmitted from the timing generator (TG) 314 to the CCD 303 so as to shorten the image acquisition time interval.
[0027]
The signal processing circuit 313 performs predetermined analog signal processing on the image signal (analog signal) output from the CCD 303. The signal processing circuit 313 includes a CDS (correlated double sampling) circuit 313a and an AGC (auto gain control) circuit 313b. The CDS circuit 313a reduces noise of the image signal, and the AGC circuit 313b adjusts the gain. As a result, the level of the image signal is adjusted.
[0028]
The light control circuit 304 controls the light emission amount of the built-in flash 5 in flash photography to a predetermined light emission amount set by the overall control unit 211. In flash photography, the reflected light of the flash light from the subject is received by the light control sensor 305 simultaneously with the start of exposure, and when this light reception amount reaches a predetermined light emission amount, the FL provided in the control unit from the light control circuit 304 A light emission stop signal STP is output from the control circuit. The flash control circuit 217 forcibly stops the light emission of the built-in flash 5 in response to the light emission stop signal STP, whereby the light emission amount of the built-in flash 5 is controlled to a predetermined light emission amount.
[0029]
Next, an internal block of the camera body 2 will be described.
[0030]
In the camera main body 2, the A / D conversion unit 205 converts each pixel signal of the image signal into a 10-bit digital signal. The A / D conversion unit 205 converts each pixel signal (analog signal) into a 10-bit digital signal based on the A / D conversion clock input from the timing control circuit 202.
[0031]
A timing control circuit 202 that generates a clock for the reference clock, the timing generator 314, and the A / D converter 205 is provided inside the camera body 2. The timing control circuit 202 is controlled by the overall control unit 211.
[0032]
The black level correction circuit 206 corrects the A / D converted pixel signal (hereinafter referred to as pixel data) to a reference black level. The WB circuit 207 performs level conversion of pixel data of each color component of R, G, and B so that the white balance is also adjusted after the γ correction. The WB circuit 207 converts the level of the pixel data of the R, G, and B color components using the level conversion table input from the overall control unit 211. Note that the conversion coefficient (characteristic gradient) of each color component in the level conversion table is set for each photographic pixel by the overall control unit 211.
[0033]
The γ correction circuit 208 corrects the γ characteristic of the pixel data. The image memory 209 is a memory that stores pixel data output from the γ correction circuit 208. The image memory 209 has a storage capacity for one frame. That is, when the CCD 303 has n rows and m columns of pixels, the image memory 209 has a storage capacity of pixel data for n × m pixels so that each pixel data is stored at a corresponding pixel position. It has become.
[0034]
The VRAM 210 is a buffer memory for image data reproduced and displayed on the LCD 10. The VRAM 210 has a storage capacity for image data corresponding to the number of pixels of the LCD 10.
[0035]
In the shooting mode, in the shooting standby state, each pixel data of the image captured at predetermined intervals by the imaging unit 3 is subjected to predetermined signal processing by the A / D converter 205 to γ correction circuit 208, and then the image The data is stored in the memory 209, transferred to the VRAM 210 via the overall control unit 211, and displayed on the LCD 10 (live view display). As a result, the photographer can visually recognize the subject image from the image displayed on the LCD 10. In the playback mode, the image read from the memory card 8 is subjected to predetermined signal processing by the overall control unit 211, then transferred to the VRAM 210, and played back and displayed on the LCD 10.
[0036]
The card I / F 212 is an interface for writing image data to the memory card 8 and reading image data.
[0037]
The flash control circuit 217 is a circuit that controls light emission of the built-in flash 5. The flash control circuit 217 controls the presence / absence of light emission, the light emission amount, the light emission timing, and the like of the built-in flash 5 based on the control signal of the overall control unit 211, and the built-in flash based on the light emission stop signal STP input from the dimming circuit 304. 5 is controlled.
[0038]
The RTC 219 is a timer circuit for managing the shooting date and time. It is driven by another power source (not shown).
[0039]
The operation unit 250 is provided with the various switches and buttons described above.
[0040]
The shutter button 9 is a two-stage switch that can detect a half-pressed state (S1) and a pressed-in state (S2) as used in a silver halide camera. When the shutter button 9 is half-pressed (S1) in the standby state, the captured image from the CCD 303 is input to the overall control unit 211, and the overall control unit 211 obtains contrast information of the captured image. The lens 301 is driven by the AF motor M2. Further, the same operation as described above is performed at least twice, the two or more obtained contrast information is compared, and the AF motor M2 is driven so as to move the lens 301 in a direction in which a higher contrast image is obtained. Is done. By repeating this operation, the lens 301 is moved to the in-focus position to perform AF.
[0041]
The overall control unit 211 is composed of a CPU, and comprehensively controls the photographing operation of the digital camera 1 by organically controlling driving of each member in the imaging unit 3 and the camera body 2 described above. In the figure, the dotted arrows are shown for convenience in order to show the flow of the image data. Actually, the image data is sent to each block via the overall control unit 211. In addition, a work memory 211a made of DRAM and a flash ROM 211b for storing programs are incorporated. The flash ROM 211b can store program data recorded on the memory card 8 as a recording medium via the card I / F 212. Thereby, the stored program can be reflected in the operation of the digital camera 1.
[0042]
Further, the overall control unit 211 includes an exposure calculation unit, and calculates by a program provided with settings of the shutter speed (SS) and the aperture 302 according to the contrast of the subject.
[0043]
When the photographing is instructed by the shutter button 9 in the photographing mode, the overall control unit 211 uses the JPEG method based on the thumbnail image of the image taken into the image memory 209 after the photographing instruction and the compression ratio set by the compression ratio setting switch 12. Compressed image compressed in step 1, and tag information (image number, exposure value, shutter speed, compression rate, shooting date, flash on / off data at the time of shooting, scene information, image determination result, etc.) Both images are stored in the memory card 8 together with the information.
[0044]
Each frame of an image recorded by the digital camera 1 is recorded with a tag portion, high-resolution image data (1600 × 1200 pixels) compressed in JPEG format, and image data for thumbnail display (80 × 60 pixels). ing. The capacity of the image data for one file is about 1 MB.
[0045]
When the shooting / playback mode setting switch 14 is set to the playback mode, the image data with the largest frame number in the memory card 8 is read out, and is decompressed in the playback image generation unit 211h in the overall control unit 211. When this is transferred to the VRAM 210, the LCD 10 displays the image with the largest frame number, that is, the most recently captured image.
[0046]
<About the number of pixels in the image>
In the digital camera 1, the captured image acquired by the CCD 303 can be selected and recorded from the following four types of pixels. The number of images can be selected by a predetermined switch operation in the key switch group 26.
[0047]
(1) 1200 × 900 pixels (1.08 million pixels)
(2) 800 x 600 pixels (480,000 pixels)
(3) 640 × 480 pixels (300,000 pixels)
(4) 400 x 300 pixels (120,000 pixels)
Here, the number of images in (1) is equal to the first number of pixels corresponding to the total number of pixels of the CCD 303, and the number of images in (4) is equal to the number of second pixels that is smaller than the first number of pixels. It has become. Hereinafter, all-pixel readout in which the captured image of the first number of pixels is acquired by the CCD 303 and thinning-out readout in which the captured image of the second number of pixels is acquired by the CCD 303 will be described.
[0048]
FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining all pixel readout and thinning readout for the CCD 303. FIG. 6A shows an example of a pixel pattern in the case of all-pixel reading, and FIG. 6B shows an example of a pixel pattern in the case of thinning-out reading.
[0049]
In the all-pixel readout, as shown in FIG. 6A, the information of all the pixels PL (shaded portion) is acquired from the pixel array 303a of the CCD 303 composed of R, G, and B pixels. Done.
[0050]
In the thinning-out reading, as shown in FIG. 6B, information of the pixel PL (shaded portion) is acquired so that the pixel array 303a of the CCD 303 is thinned out at a ratio of 1/9. This thinning readout makes it possible to shorten the acquisition time of captured images compared to all-pixel readout, so that it is easy to cope with continuous shooting and the like.
[0051]
Next, generation of the image with the number of pixels will be described.
[0052]
The images of (2) and (3) are generated by the first image processing that reduces the image size of the captured image of the first number of pixels by generating pixel data in consideration of surrounding pixel data. To do. This pixel synthesis is performed by, for example, the bicubic method or the nearest neighbor method. The first image processing is performed by the overall control unit 211. Here, since the reduction process is performed from image data with a large amount of information, a certain amount of processing time is required, but a high-quality image with reduced influence of noise can be obtained.
[0053]
In addition, for the images of (2) and (3), the second image processing for enlarging the image size of the captured image of the second number of pixels by pixel interpolation that interpolates the pixels in consideration of surrounding pixel data. Can also be generated. This pixel interpolation is performed by, for example, the bicubic method or the nearest neighbor method. The second image processing is performed by the overall control unit 211. Here, since it is an enlargement process from image data with a small amount of information, it is difficult to obtain a high-quality image, but since the original captured image can be acquired at high speed by thinning-out readout, a predetermined number of images Can be obtained quickly. For the image (4), the captured image of the second number of pixels can be used as it is without converting the image size.
[0054]
<Operation of Digital Camera 1>
FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the basic operation of the digital camera 1.
[0055]
In step ST1, it is determined whether the live view is set, that is, whether the LCD button 32 is pressed and the live view mode is set. If the live view is set, the process proceeds to step ST2. If the live view is not set, the process proceeds to step ST3.
[0056]
In step ST2, the TG 314 is set so as to transmit a drive control signal for live view to the CCD 303, and live view display is performed on the LCD 10.
[0057]
In step ST3, the number of pixels of the image is selected from the above four types of pixels by the switch operation of the switch group 26.
[0058]
In step ST4, it is determined whether the continuous shooting mode is selected. This selection is performed by a predetermined switch operation of the switch group 26. If the continuous shooting mode is selected, the process proceeds to step ST8. If the continuous shooting mode is not selected, the process proceeds to step ST5.
[0059]
In step ST5, a single shooting (single shooting) mode is set.
[0060]
In step ST6, it is determined whether the above-described thinning readout is selected. Here, the screen display shown in FIG. 8 is performed on the LCD 10, and the underline UL is moved up and down by the switch operation of the switch group 26 to select thinning readout or all pixel readout. If thinning readout is selected, the process proceeds to step ST7. If thinning readout is not selected, the process proceeds to step ST9.
[0061]
In step ST7, the above-described thinning readout is set.
[0062]
In step ST8, the continuous shooting mode is set.
[0063]
In step ST9, the above-described all-pixel readout is set.
[0064]
In step ST10, it is determined whether the shutter button 9 is half-pressed (S1). Here, if half-pressed, the process proceeds to step ST11. If not half-pressed, the process proceeds to step ST1.
[0065]
In step ST11, AE control is performed. That is, the shutter speed and the aperture 302 are set according to the contrast information of the subject.
[0066]
In step ST12, an AF operation is performed. That is, based on the photographed image from the CCD 303, the lens 301 is driven by the AF motor M2, and the lens 301 is moved to the in-focus position to perform AF.
[0067]
In step ST13, it is determined whether the shutter button 9 has been fully pressed (S2). Here, if it is fully pressed, the process proceeds to step ST14. If it is not fully pressed, the process proceeds to step ST11.
[0068]
In step ST14, actual photographing is performed. The operation of the main photographing will be described below.
[0069]
FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining the operation relating to the main photographing.
[0070]
In step ST21, it is determined whether the number of pixels of the image is set to 1200 × 900. If the number of pixels is set to 1200 × 900, the process proceeds to step ST30. If the number of pixels is not set to 1200 × 900, the process proceeds to step ST22.
[0071]
In step ST22, it is determined whether the single shooting mode is set. If it is in the single shooting mode, the process proceeds to step ST24.
[0072]
In step ST23, it is determined whether or not thinning readout is set. If thinning readout is set, the process proceeds to step ST24. If thinning readout is not set, the process proceeds to step ST30.
[0073]
In step ST24, the timing generator (TG) 314 is set to thinning readout, and a control signal for thinning readout is output to the CCD 303.
[0074]
In step ST25, photographing is performed by thinning readout. That is, a captured image is acquired with the number of pixels of 400 × 300. Thereby, even in the continuous shooting mode, a captured image can be acquired at high speed.
[0075]
In step ST26, the captured image acquired in step ST25 is subjected to predetermined processing by the signal processing circuit 313 and the A / D conversion unit 205 and stored in the image memory 209.
[0076]
In step ST27, it is determined whether the number of pixels of the image is set to 400 × 300. Here, if the number of pixels is set to 400 × 300, it is not necessary to convert the image size, so the process proceeds to step ST29. As described above, when the number of pixels of the captured image acquired by the CCD 303 is equal to the number of pixels of the image selected in step ST3, image processing for size conversion is not performed. If the number of pixels is not set to 400 × 300, the process proceeds to step ST28.
[0077]
In step ST28, the captured image is enlarged by the above-described pixel interpolation to the image size of the number of pixels selected in step ST3, and an image is generated.
[0078]
In step ST29, shooting is terminated. That is, the captured image is recorded in the memory card 8 with the image size of the number of pixels selected in step ST3.
[0079]
In step ST30, the timing generator (TG) 314 is set to read all pixels, and a control signal for reading all pixels is output to the CCD 303.
[0080]
In step ST31, shooting is performed with all pixel readout. That is, a captured image is acquired with an image size of 1200 × 900 pixels.
[0081]
In step ST32, the captured image acquired in step ST31 is subjected to predetermined processing by the signal processing circuit 313 and the A / D conversion unit 205 and stored in the image memory 209.
[0082]
In step ST33, it is determined whether the number of pixels of the image is set to 1200 × 900. Here, when the number of pixels is set to 1200 × 900 pixels, image size conversion is not necessary, so the process proceeds to step ST29. When the number of pixels is not set to 1200 × 900, step ST34 is performed. Proceed to
[0083]
In step ST34, the captured image is reduced to the image size of the number of pixels selected in step ST3 by the above-described pixel synthesis to generate an image.
[0084]
With the above-described operation of the digital camera 1, in the case of high-speed shooting such as continuous shooting, an image with a specified number of pixels can be obtained quickly and a high-quality image can be obtained because a captured image acquired by thinning-out readout is used. In this case, an image with a designated number of pixels can be obtained with high quality because a captured image obtained by reading all pixels is used. As a result, it is possible to obtain an image having a designated number of pixels according to the photographer's request.
[0085]
<Modification>
In the above embodiment, when the digital camera is capable of moving image shooting, the captured image acquired in the thinning mode may be converted to a predetermined image size by pixel interpolation, as in the continuous shooting described above. .
[0086]
For image acquisition of two types of pixels in the above embodiment, it is not essential to use all pixel readout and thinning readout for one CCD, and two CCDs having different numbers of pixels may be used.
[0087]
◎ In the above embodiment, in the case of continuous shooting, thinning readout is always performed. In the case of continuous shooting, thinning readout may be performed.
[0088]
The image size that can be selected in the above embodiment is not necessarily larger than the image size that can be acquired by thinning-out reading, and may include an image size smaller than this. This image size is obtained by reducing and interpolating a captured image acquired by thinning readout.
[0089]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the first to sixth aspects of the invention, the image signal having the first pixel number is subjected to the first image processing or the image signal having the second pixel number smaller than the first pixel number. On the other hand, it is possible to generate an image signal of a designated number of pixels by the second image processing. As a result, it is possible to obtain an image having a designated number of pixels according to the photographer's request.
[0090]
In particular, in the invention of claim 2, when the acquisition interval of the image signal for recording is shorter than a predetermined time interval, the second conversion means is selected to generate the image signal of the designated number of pixels. Compatible with high-speed shooting such as continuous shooting.
[0091]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, the first conversion means and the second conversion means are selected in accordance with a predetermined operation input, and an image signal having a specified number of pixels is generated. Can be obtained.
[0092]
In the invention of claim 4, since the first image processing is pixel synthesis processing accompanied by reduction of the image size, an image having the first number of pixels can be appropriately converted into an image having the specified number of pixels.
[0093]
In the invention of claim 5, since the second image processing is pixel interpolation processing accompanied by an increase in image size, an image having the second number of pixels can be appropriately converted into an image having the specified number of pixels.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a main configuration of a digital camera 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a main configuration of the digital camera 1;
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a main configuration of the digital camera 1;
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a main configuration of the digital camera 1;
5 is a functional block diagram of the digital camera 1. FIG.
6 is a diagram for explaining all pixel readout and thinning readout for a CCD 303; FIG.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining basic operations of the digital camera 1;
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen for thinning readout and all pixel readout in a single-shot mode.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an operation related to actual photographing.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Digital camera
9 Shutter button
10 Liquid crystal display (LCD)
211 Overall control unit
301 lens
302 aperture
303 CCD
303a CCD pixel array

Claims (6)

A digital camera,
(a) an imaging unit capable of selectively generating an image signal having a first pixel number and an image signal having a second pixel number smaller than the first pixel number;
(b) setting means capable of setting an image size related to a designated pixel number smaller than the first pixel number;
(c) first conversion means for performing first image processing on the image signal having the first pixel number and converting the image signal to the designated pixel number;
(d) second conversion means for performing second image processing on the image signal having the second number of pixels and converting the image signal to the specified number of pixels;
(e) generation means for generating an image signal of the specified number of pixels by selectively activating the first conversion means and the second conversion means;
A digital camera comprising: The digital camera according to claim 1, wherein
The imaging means includes
(a-1) Continuous shooting means for continuously generating image signals for recording,
And having
The generating means includes
(e-1) When the acquisition interval of the image signal for recording by the continuous shooting means is shorter than a predetermined time interval, the second conversion means is selected to generate an image signal of the specified number of pixels. Means to
A digital camera comprising: The digital camera according to claim 1 or 2,
(f) an input means capable of inputting a predetermined operation;
Further comprising
The generating means includes
(e-2) means for selecting the first conversion means or the second conversion means in accordance with the predetermined operation input, and generating an image signal of the specified number of pixels;
A digital camera comprising: The digital camera according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The digital camera according to claim 1, wherein the first image processing is pixel synthesis processing accompanied by reduction of an image size. The digital camera according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
2. The digital camera according to claim 1, wherein the second image processing is pixel interpolation processing accompanied with enlargement of an image size. A program for functioning as a digital camera according to any one of claims 1 to 5 is recorded by being installed in a microcomputer built in the digital camera. Computer-readable recording medium.

Images