Image capture controlling device, image capture controlling method, and program

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9456143-B2
Application number	US-201314401637-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 2, 2013
Priority date	Jun 21, 2012
Publication date	Sep 27, 2016
Grant date	Sep 27, 2016

Abstract

Provided is an image capture controlling device including a controlling unit that analyzes a subject of a consecutive zoom shooting on the basis of an image generated before starting the consecutive zoom shooting, the consecutive shooting being performed by repeating a zooming operation and an image capturing operation, and that performs a control to perform the consecutive zoom shooting using a transition condition of a zoom magnification determined on the basis of a result of the analysis.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An image capture controlling device comprising:
circuitry configured to analyze a subject of a consecutive zoom shooting on the basis of an image of the subject generated before starting the consecutive zoom shooting, the consecutive zoom shooting being performed by repeating a zooming operation and an image capturing operation in an optical axis direction, and control to perform the consecutive zoom shooting using a transition condition of a zoom magnification determined on the basis of a result of the analysis,
wherein the circuitry is configured to determine the transition condition of the zoom magnification depending on a moving speed of a moving object included in the subject in a direction orthogonal to the optical axis direction.

2. The image capture controlling device according to claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is configured to determine the transition condition of the zoom magnification in accordance with a moving speed of a focused subject specified by a user.

3. The image capture controlling device according to claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is configured to determine a moving distance of a zoom lens at a time of the zooming operation as the transition condition of the zoom magnification.

4. The image capture controlling device according to claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is configured to determine the transition condition of the zoom magnification by changing a processing content of image processing performed while the consecutive zoom shooting is performed.

5. The image capture controlling device comprising
circuitry configured to analyze a subject of a consecutive zoom shooting on the basis of an image of the subject generated before starting the consecutive zoom shooting, the consecutive zoom shooting being performed by repeating a zooming operation and an image capturing operation, and control to perform the consecutive zoom shooting using a transition condition of a zoom magnification determined on the basis of a result of the analysis,
wherein the circuitry is configured to determine the transition condition of the zoom magnification by changing a processing content of image processing performed while the consecutive zoom shooting is performed, and
wherein the circuitry is configured to reduce a load of image processing performed in a course of subjecting a RAW image generated through the consecutive zoom shooting to compression coding to generate an image, as a moving speed of a moving object included in the subject increases to determine the transition condition of the zoom magnification.

6. The image capture controlling device according to claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is configured to control to perform the consecutive zoom shooting in an image capturing instruction input period during which an image capturing instruction is input by a user.

7. The image capture controlling device according to claim 6 , wherein the circuitry is configured to perform the control regarding a period during which a shutter release button is pressed as the image capturing instruction input period.

8. The image capture controlling device according to claim 7 , wherein the circuitry is configured to terminate the consecutive zoom shooting irrespective of whether the shutter release button is pressed or not, in case a zoom lens driven in the consecutive zoom shooting reaches an end portion of a driving range of the zoom lens.

9. An image capture controlling method comprising:
analyzing a subject of a consecutive zoom shooting on the basis of an image of the subject generated before starting the consecutive zoom shooting, the consecutive zoom shooting being performed by repeating a zooming operation and an image capturing operation in an optical axis direction,
controlling to perform the consecutive zoom shooting using a transition condition of a zoom magnification determined on the basis of a result of the analysis, and
determining the transition condition of the zoom magnification depending on a moving speed of a moving object included in the subject in a direction orthogonal to the optical axis direction.

10. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium, having stored thereon, a set of instructions comprising:
analyzing a subject of a consecutive zoom shooting on the basis of an image of the subject generated before starting the consecutive zoom shooting, the consecutive zoom shooting being performed by repeating a zooming operation and an image capturing operation in an optical axis direction,
controlling to perform the consecutive zoom shooting using a transition condition of a zoom magnification determined on the basis of a result of the analysis, and
determining the transition condition of the zoom magnification depending on a moving speed of a moving object included in the subject in a direction orthogonal to the optical axis direction.

Assignees

• Sony Corp

Inventors

• Ikeda Hiroshi

Classifications

• H04N23/743

  Bracketing, i.e. taking a series of images with varying exposure conditions · CPC title

• H04N5/145

  Movement estimation (for video coding H04N19/51) · CPC title

• G02B7/102 Primary

  controlled by a microcomputer (cameras with interchangeable lenses G03B17/14) · CPC title

• H04N23/611

  where the recognised objects include parts of the human body · CPC title

• G03B2205/0046

  Movement of one or more optical elements for zooming · CPC title