JP4236358B2 - Electronic camera with electronic viewfinder - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder.
[0002]
[Prior art]
A subject image is formed on a solid-state image sensor such as a CCD two-dimensional image sensor by a photographing optical system and converted into an electrical signal, and the resulting still image signal is digitized and stored in a semiconductor memory or the like. So-called electronic cameras that record on a medium are widely used.
[0003]
Many of such electronic cameras are generally provided with a rear liquid crystal panel provided on the back of the electronic camera for reproducing and displaying a recorded image and a view-type optical viewfinder (hereinafter referred to as OVF). . The sight-type OVF is used for a photographer to hold an electronic camera firmly and determine photographing conditions while preventing camera shake and the like. However, when the OVF is provided, it is necessary to provide a dedicated optical system separately from the photographing optical system, so that space is required, which is disadvantageous for downsizing the electronic camera. In addition, parallax may occur when the electronic camera is not a so-called single-lens reflex camera.
[0004]
In addition, in an electronic camera, an image signal obtained by a solid-state imaging device can be output and displayed as a through image data as it is on a rear liquid crystal panel at a constant cycle (for example, a video rate). A configuration for use as an electronic viewfinder (hereinafter referred to as EVF) is also possible. However, although EVF using a rear liquid crystal panel is convenient as it is, it may be difficult to determine the composition firmly and may cause camera shake.
[0005]
In consideration of such problems, in some recent electronic cameras, an EVF using a small liquid crystal panel may be provided as a view-type viewfinder instead of OVF. In this case, if the rear liquid crystal panel also has an EVF function, the electronic camera has two EVFs, and the recorded image can be reproduced and displayed also by the viewing-type EVF liquid crystal panel. It is.
[0006]
[Problem to be Solved by the Invention]
In addition to the rear LCD panel, a viewing-type EVF with a small LCD panelElectronic providedcameraIn the backLiquid crystal panel and liquid crystal panel for EVFAgainstIn both the shooting mode and the playback mode, the same display is always performed, and it cannot be said that the two liquid crystal panels are effectively used.
[0007]
The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and in the case of providing a peep-type electronic viewfinder using a small liquid crystal panel or the like, the rear display for displaying a reproduced image is effectively used to An object is to provide an electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder that can enhance convenience.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
(1)To solve the above problems, an electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to the present inventionThe peekA punch-in type electronic viewfinder and a display screen larger than the electronic viewfinderAn image output from the solid-state imaging device is displayed as a through image on any one of a display unit, the viewing-type electronic viewfinder, and the display unit, and an enlarged image of a part of the through image is displayed on the other side. That controls to display a partially enlarged image superimposed withIt is provided with. Here, the display means is a rear display such as a rear liquid crystal display provided on the rear surface of the electronic camera, for example.
[0009]
(2) In the above (1), the partially enlarged image is displayed as an image for setting photographing conditions. In the present invention, in the photographing mode, either the peep-type electronic viewfinder or the display means having a display screen larger than the electronic viewfinder is provided on the rear display.By displaying the image for setting the shooting conditions, it is possible to improve convenience for the photographer and improve usability.
[0010]
(3) In the above (2), an image obtained by enlarging a part of the through image in the partial enlarged image is an image of a focus target portion. For exampleIn this way, the partially enlarged image is used as the focused image, and the focusing operation is performed while confirming the point to be focused on the large focused image on the display screen, and the composition is determined by looking into the electronic viewfinder. To beit can.
[0011]
(4) In the above (1), the controller switches between a display destination where the through image is displayed and a display destination where the partial enlarged image is displayed. In this way, the partially enlarged image can be visually recognized at a desired display destination.
[0012]
(5) Further, another camera with an electronic viewfinder according to the present invention is an electronic camera that captures an image with a solid-state imaging device and records the image on a recording medium. A display unit having a larger display screen, an image output from the solid-state image sensor on one of the viewing-type electronic viewfinder and the display unit, and a solid-state image sensor on the other And a control unit that controls to display an enlarged image of the image output by. When photographing, the electronic viewfinder or display means can immediately confirm the state before zooming, which is an effective judgment material when changing the degree of zooming, that is, the zoom magnification.
[0013]
(6) In the above (5), the control unit controls switching between a display destination where the through image is displayed and a display destination where the enlarged image is displayed. In this way, the enlarged image can be visually recognized at a desired display destination.
[0015]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows an external view of an electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the back side. The back of the electronic camera body is provided with a view-type EVF (electronic viewfinder) 1, a playback liquid crystal panel 2, a shooting / playback mode switch 3 and various operation keys (cross keys) 4, etc. A release button (shutter button) 5 is provided. Here, the peeping type EVF 1 is provided with a small liquid crystal panel, and is hereinafter referred to as an EVF liquid crystal panel. In the present invention, the reproduction liquid crystal panel 1 displays other than the reproduced recorded image (reproduced image) in the photographing mode, and is hereinafter referred to as a rear liquid crystal panel.
[0016]
The present invention is characterized by the usage of the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and the rear liquid crystal panel 2, particularly the usage of the rear liquid crystal panel 2. Hereinafter, some specific embodiments focusing on this usage will be described.
[0017]
(First embodiment)
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of the electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Light from the subject passes through the photographing lens system 11, the diaphragm 15, and the shutter 16, and then enters a solid-state imaging device (hereinafter simply referred to as a CCD) 17 using a CCD two-dimensional image sensor. An image is formed. The photographing lens system 11 is controlled to move in the optical axis direction by an AF (auto focus) mechanism 12 and an MF (manual focus) mechanism 13, and the MF mechanism 13 is operated by a manual focus operation ring 14.
[0018]
The CCD 17 is configured by arranging photoelectric conversion elements (for example, photodiodes) called pixels in a two-dimensional matrix to form an imaging surface, and further arranging a color filter on the imaging surface, and is driven by a CCD driver (not shown). As a result, signal charges corresponding to the subject image formed on the imaging surface are accumulated. The signal charge accumulated on the imaging surface is read out as an electrical signal from the CCD 17 with the shutter 16 closed.
[0019]
An output signal from the CCD 17 is input to an imaging circuit 18 that performs processing such as AE (automatic exposure control), reading, element shutter control, and sCCD power supply on / off control, and is output from the imaging circuit 18 as an image signal. This image signal is input to the buffer memory 21 via the A / D converter 19 and the image processing unit 20 that performs conversion (gamma conversion, color conversion) to still image data for photography, and the like. The image data for the screen is temporarily stored.
[0020]
When saving the image data stored in the buffer memory 21, the image data read from the buffer memory 21 is compressed by, for example, the JPEG method by the compression / decompression unit 22 and then input to the magneto-optical disk drive device 23. It is written as recorded image data on the magneto-optical disk 24 which is a recording medium. When this recorded image data is reproduced, the image data read from the magneto-optical disk 24 by the magneto-optical disk drive device 23 is expanded by the compression / expansion unit 22 and then temporarily stored in the buffer memory 21, Displayed by the liquid crystal panel 2.
[0021]
The focus image creating unit 25 creates a focus image (partial enlarged image) to be displayed on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1, and an output from the focus image creating unit 25 is a VRAM (video RAM) 26. Then, it is supplied to the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 through the liquid crystal control unit 27.
[0022]
Similarly, the focus image creation unit 28 creates a focus image (partially enlarged image) to be displayed on the rear liquid crystal panel 2, and outputs from the focus image creation unit 28 are a VRAM 29 and a liquid crystal control unit. 30 is supplied to the rear liquid crystal panel 2.
[0023]
The system controller 40 receives various operation signals, that is, operation signals from the operation key 3, the photographing / playback mode changeover switch 4, the release button 5, and the like, and each part in the electronic camera, that is, the AF mechanism 12, the aperture 15, the shutter 16 and the like. The imaging circuit 18, the image processing unit 20, the focused image creation unit 25, the liquid crystal control unit 27, the focused image creation unit 28, the liquid crystal control unit 30, and other controls are performed.
[0024]
The system controller 40 includes an AF control unit 41, a focused image output destination switching unit 42, and a shooting / playback mode switching unit 43 as elements related to the present invention.
[0025]
The AF control unit 41 controls the AF mechanism 12 by performing, for example, a known contrast AF process based on the output from the A / D converter 19. Further, the AF control unit 41 turns on / off the AF process according to the input from the operation key 3. Further, when the AF control unit 41 releases the release button 5 for the first release, the focus is locked. Note that the target portion of focus (including both AF / MF) is a partial region near the center in the imaging region. When AF is off, the MF mechanism 13 is operated and focused by the manual focus operation ring 14.
[0026]
Based on the input from the operation key 3, the focused image output destination switching unit 42 determines whether or not to display a partial enlarged image that is a focused image by either the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 or the rear liquid crystal panel 2. A command is sent to the alignment image creation units 25 and 28. The partial enlarged image that is a focused image is an image obtained by enlarging the image of the focus target portion of the through image in the above-described shooting region.
[0027]
The shooting / playback mode switching unit 43 switches between the shooting mode and the playback mode based on an input from the shooting / playback mode switching switch 4, and the focus image creating unit 28 on the rear liquid crystal panel 2 side is changed to a through image (in the shooting mode). Alternatively, in the playback mode, the playback image is controlled to be displayed on the rear liquid crystal panel 2.
[0028]
Next, operations in the shooting mode and the playback mode relating to display on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and the rear liquid crystal panel 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
[Operation in shooting mode]
First, it is determined whether or not the shooting mode is set (step S1). In the shooting mode, the following processing is performed.
[0029]
In the shooting mode, the image data output from the image processing unit 20 is through image data, and this image data is input to the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 via the focused image creation unit 25, VRAM 26 and liquid crystal control unit 27. Similarly, the through image data output from the image processing unit 20 is input to the rear liquid crystal panel 2 via the focused image creation unit 28, the VRAM 29, and the liquid crystal control unit 30.
[0030]
In this shooting mode, both the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and the rear liquid crystal panel 2 basically function as an EVF that displays a through image. In this embodiment, either the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 or the rear liquid crystal panel 2 is used. As a result of the control by the focused image output destination switching unit 42, a partially enlarged image that is a focused image can be appropriately displayed instead of the through image.
[0031]
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the display. (A) is an original image that is a through image, and (b) is an enlargement of only the focus area (focus target portion) of the original image of (a). A partially enlarged image is shown.
[0032]
That is, in the shooting mode, it is first determined whether or not the display range of the focused image is set by the focused image output destination switching unit 42 (step S2). If this display range is not set, the EVF liquid crystal is set. A through image is displayed on both the panel 1 and the rear liquid crystal panel 2 as shown in FIG. 4A (step S3), and it is determined whether or not the display setting of the focused image has been made (step S4).
[0033]
If the display range of the focused image is set in step S2, or if the display setting of the focused image is set in step S4, whether the display setting is made for the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 or the rear surface. It is determined whether or not it is applied to the liquid crystal panel 2 (step S5).
[0034]
Here, in the former case, based on the focus image data created by the focus image creation unit 25 in the EVF liquid crystal panel 1, a partially enlarged image that is a focus image as shown in FIG. 4B. Is displayed, and a through image is displayed on the rear liquid crystal panel 2 based on the through image data that has passed through the focused image creation unit 27 as it is (step S6).
[0035]
In the latter case, a partially enlarged image that is a focusing image is displayed as shown in FIG. 4B based on the focusing image data created by the focusing image creation unit 28 in the rear liquid crystal panel 2. In the EVF liquid crystal panel 1, a through image is displayed as shown in FIG. 4A based on the through image data that has passed through the focused image creation unit 23 as it is (step S7).
[0036]
Next, when there is no focus image display setting in step S4, or when the focus image is displayed in steps S6 and S7, the release button 5 is pressed in step S10 through steps S8 and S9. That is, when the 2nd release is performed (YES in step S10), the photographing process is performed (step S11).
[0037]
In this photographing process, through image data output from the buffer memory 21 is compressed by the compression / decompression processing unit 22, supplied to the magneto-optical disk drive device 23, and recorded on the magneto-optical disk 24. In step S8, it is determined whether or not the manual focus operation ring 14 has been operated within a predetermined time. In step S9, it is determined whether or not focus lock (1st release) has been performed.
[0038]
Since the focused image displayed in steps S6 and S7 is a partially enlarged image, the photographer can grasp the focus state more appropriately. Therefore, depending on the focus state, AF can be canceled and the manual focus operation ring 14 can be used in step S8 to achieve better focusing.
[0039]
Further, it is possible to focus on the best state by using the focus displayed on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 or the rear liquid crystal panel 2 and then focus lock in step S9 to determine the composition. That is, when displaying a focused image on the rear liquid crystal panel 2, after focusing on the best while looking at the display on the rear liquid crystal panel 2, look into the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and hold it firmly. The composition can be determined, and camera shake and the like can be reduced.
[0040]
On the other hand, when displaying a focused image on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1, focusing is performed while viewing the display on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1, and then the rear liquid crystal panel 1 is used as the EVF and the composition is determined. When the composition is determined by the display on the rear liquid crystal panel 2, the subject to be photographed can be seen with the naked eye, so that it is easy to determine what composition is in the entire landscape.
[0041]
[Operation in playback mode]
When the shooting mode is not set in step S1, that is, in the playback mode, the following playback mode processing is performed. In this playback mode, no focused image is displayed.
[0042]
The through image display on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 is the same as in the photographing mode. On the other hand, on the rear liquid crystal panel 2, a through image is displayed especially when there is no instruction to display a reproduction image, but when a display instruction to display the reproduction image is given, the recorded image recorded on the magneto-optical disk 24 is reproduced, Displayed on the rear liquid crystal panel 2. That is, in the playback mode, the buffer memory
21 stores reproduction image data reproduced from the magneto-optical disk 24 by the magneto-optical disk drive device 23 and decompressed by the compression / decompression unit 22, so that the rear liquid crystal panel 2 reproduces the reproduced image, that is, the magneto-optical disk. 22 will be displayed.
[0043]
As described above, in the present embodiment, in the shooting mode, a partial enlarged image that is a focused image is displayed on the rear liquid crystal panel 2, thereby performing a focusing operation while confirming a point to be focused on a large focused image on the display screen. It is possible to look into the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and determine the composition, which improves usability.
[0044]
(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 5 shows a system configuration of an electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, the focused image display in the first embodiment is replaced with an electronic zoom image display.
[0045]
In FIG. 5, the same reference numerals are assigned to the portions corresponding to those in FIG. 2 to describe the differences from the first embodiment. First, the focus image creating units 25 and 28 in FIG. It has been replaced by creation units 31 and 32. The system controller 40 includes a shooting / playback mode switching unit 43 and a zoom control unit 44. The shooting / playback mode switching unit 43 has the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, but differs from the first embodiment in that the command destination is the zoom image creation units 31 and 32.
[0046]
The zoom control unit 44 gives an instruction as to whether or not to perform electronic zoom display, an instruction as to which of the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and the rear liquid crystal panel 2 is used when electronic zoom display is performed, and a zoom magnification value. This is given to the zoom image creation units 31 and 32.
[0047]
Next, operations in the shooting mode and the playback mode relating to display on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and the rear liquid crystal panel 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
[Operation in shooting mode]
First, it is determined whether or not the shooting mode is set (step S21). In the shooting mode, the following processing is performed.
[0048]
In the photographing mode, the image data output from the image processing unit 20 is through image data, and this image data is input to the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 via the zoom image creating unit 31, the VRAM 26 and the liquid crystal control unit 27. Similarly, the through image data output from the image processing unit 20 is input to the rear liquid crystal panel 2 through the zoom image creating unit 32, the VRAM 29, and the liquid crystal control unit 30.
[0049]
In this shooting mode, both the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and the rear liquid crystal panel 2 basically function as an EVF for displaying a through image, but either the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 or the rear liquid crystal panel 2 is used as a system controller 40. An electronic zoom image can be appropriately displayed instead of the through image by the control of the zoom control unit 44.
FIG. 7 is a view showing a display example, where (a) shows an original image which is a through image, and (b) shows an electronic zoom image obtained by enlarging the original image of (a) twice.
[0050]
That is, in the shooting mode, first, it is determined whether or not the display range of the electronic zoom image is set by the zoom control unit 44 (step S22). If this display range is not set, as described above, FIG. ), The through image is displayed on both the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and the rear liquid crystal panel 2 (step S23), and it is subsequently determined whether the electronic zoom image is displayed and the magnification is set (step S24). . The operation key 3 is used to set the magnification (zoom magnification) of the electronic zoom image.
[0051]
If the display range of the electronic zoom image is set in step S22, or if the display setting of the electronic zoom image is set in step S24, whether the display setting is made for the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 or the rear surface. It is determined whether or not it is applied to the liquid crystal panel 2 (step S25).
[0052]
In the former case, an electronic zoom image is displayed on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 as shown in FIG. 7B, and a through image is displayed on the rear liquid crystal panel 2 as shown in FIG. 7A. (Step S26). In the latter case, an electronic zoom image is displayed on the rear liquid crystal panel 2 as shown in FIG. 7B, and a through image is displayed on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 as shown in FIG. 7A (step S27). ).
[0053]
Next, when there is no electronic zoom image display setting in step S24 or when the electronic zoom image is displayed in steps S26 and S27, when the release button 5 is pressed, that is, 2nd release is performed ( In step S28, YES, the photographing process is performed on the electronic zoom image (step S29).
[0054]
That is, the image processing unit 20 outputs normal through image data that is an original image of the electronic zoom image when the 2nd release is not performed, but is controlled by the system controller 40 during the shooting process when the 2nd release is performed. Electronic zoom image data obtained by zooming the through image at the zoom magnification set by the operation key 3 is output. The electronic zoom image data is compressed by the compression / decompression processing unit 22 via the buffer memory 21, supplied to the magneto-optical disk drive device 23, and recorded on the magneto-optical disk 24.
[0055]
Thus, in the present embodiment, the photographer can display the through image and the electronic zoom by simultaneously displaying the through image and the electronic zoom image, which are the original images before the electronic zoom, using the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and the rear liquid crystal panel 2. An appropriate zoom magnification can be determined while appropriately comparing images.
[0056]
For example, when an electronic zoom image is displayed on the rear liquid crystal panel 2, the electronic zoom image to be photographed is determined while looking at the display on the liquid crystal panel 2, and then the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 is looked into and firmly held. It is possible to shoot with the camera in a state where the camera shakes, and camera shake can be reduced.
On the other hand, even when the electronic zoom image is displayed on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1, the through image that is the original image is displayed on the rear liquid crystal panel 2, so that the photographer appropriately displays the electronic zoom image and the through image. You can compare.
The photographer uses the above-described two display patterns, namely, a first display pattern for displaying a through image on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1 and an electronic zoom image on the rear liquid crystal panel 2, and an electronic zoom image on the EVF liquid crystal panel 1. From the second display patterns for displaying through images on the rear liquid crystal panel 2, any display pattern that is convenient for the user can be appropriately selected.
[0057]
[Operation in playback mode]
Since the operation in the playback mode in this embodiment is exactly the same as that in the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted.
[0058]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be implemented with various modifications. For example, a magnetic disk (floppy disk, hard disk), phase change disk, semiconductor memory (flash memory), or the like can be used as the recording medium instead of the magneto-optical disk. Further, instead of the EVF liquid crystal panel and the rear liquid crystal panel, a plasma display, a small cathode ray tube or other various flat display devices may be used.
[0059]
【The invention's effect】
As explained above,According to the present invention, two liquid crystal panels can be used effectively. For example,An image for setting shooting conditions in a through image displayed on the electronic viewfinder on the rear display, for example, a partial enlarged image or zoom image of the through image used for focusing confirmation, or conversely, a through image on the rear display By displaying the image for setting the shooting condition in the through image with the electronic viewfinder, the rear display can be effectively used and the convenience of the photographer can be improved.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an appearance of an electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to the present invention viewed from the back side.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of the electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in the embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a view showing a display example of an original image (through image) and a focusing image (partially enlarged image) in the embodiment;
FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of an electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in the embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a view showing a display example of an original image (through image) and an electronic zoom image in the embodiment;
[Explanation of symbols]
1. Peep-type electronic viewfinder (Liquid crystal panel for EVF)
2. LCD panel for playback (back LCD panel)
3. Operation keys
4. Shooting / playback mode switch
5 ... Release button
11 ... Photography lens system
12 ... AF mechanism
13 ... MF mechanism
14 ... Manual focus operation ring
15 ... Aperture
16 ... Shutter
17 ... CCD (solid-state image sensor)
18 ... Imaging circuit
19 ... A / D converter
20: Image processing unit
21 ... Buffer memory
22: Compression / decompression unit
23 ... Magneto-optical disk drive device
24: Magneto-optical disk (recording medium)
25, 28 ... Focus image creation unit
26, 29 ... VRAM
27, 30 ... Liquid crystal control unit
31, 32 ... zoom image creation unit
40 ... System controller
41. AF control unit
42: Focused image output destination switching unit
43. Shooting / playback mode switching section
44. Zoom control unit

Claims (8)

Oite the electronic camera to be recorded on the recording medium by photographing an image by the solid-state imaging device,
Peep-type electronic viewfinder,
Display means having a display screen larger than the electronic viewfinder;
The image output from the solid-state imaging device is displayed as a through image on one of the view-type electronic viewfinder and the display means, and the enlarged image of a part of the through image is superimposed on the through image on the other With a controller that controls to display a partially enlarged image ,
An electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder. The electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to claim 1 , wherein the partial enlarged image is displayed as an image for setting photographing conditions . 3. The electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to claim 2 , wherein an image obtained by enlarging a part of the through image in the partial enlarged image is an image of a focus target portion . 2. The electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to claim 1 , wherein the controller switches and controls a display destination where the through image is displayed and a display destination where the partial enlarged image is displayed . In an electronic camera that captures an image with a solid-state image sensor and records it on a recording medium,
Peep-type electronic viewfinder,
Display means having a display screen larger than the electronic viewfinder;
An image output from the solid-state image sensor is displayed as a through image on one of the view-type electronic viewfinder and the display means, and an enlarged image of the image output by the solid-state image sensor is displayed on the other. Equipped with a control unit to control
An electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder. 6. The electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to claim 5 , wherein the control unit switches and controls a display destination where the through image is displayed and a display destination where the enlarged image is displayed . Before SL enlarged image is an electronic view electronic camera viewfinder according to claim 5, wherein the displayed as setting image capturing condition. 6. The electronic camera with an electronic viewfinder according to claim 5 , wherein the control unit controls a zoom magnification of the enlarged image .

Images