Imaging apparatus
View Patent ↗An imaging apparatus suppresses deterioration in an image quality caused by an electronic zoom. A digital camera equipped with a plurality of optical systems includes a fixed focal distance lens and a zoom lens. When a user sets a zoom position between discrete optical zoom positions within an overlapping range of the electronic zoom range of the fixed focal distance lens and the optical zoom range of the zoom lens, a control processor and timing generator sets the electronic zoom at the user's setting zoom position. Subsequently, when the zoom position of the zoom lens passes the user's setting zoom position, a photograph is taken, and an optical zoom image is stored in a memory card.
1. An imaging apparatus, comprising:
an imaging optical system that performs step drive of an angle of view of a zoom;
angle of view specifying means for specifying the angle of view of the zoom;
commanding means for issuing a command to take a picture;
control means for performing the step drive of an optical zoom of said imaging optical system in a direction of the specified angle of view when the picture taking command is performed to record a subject image by use of said imaging optical system at a time point of passing the specified angle of view
said angle of view specifying means is means for specifying an angle of view continuously or at a width finer than a width of the step drive, and
said control means controls step positions of said imaging optical system so as to follow a neighborhood of the specified angle of view and performs the step drive of the optical zoom of said imaging optical system in the direction of the specified angle of view from a step position near the optical zoom of said imaging optical system when the picture taking command is performed for recording the subject image at a time point of passing the specified angle of view.
2. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising display means for displaying a zoom image in accordance with the specified angle of view.
3. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising means for generating an electronic zoom image in accordance with the specified angle of view, wherein said display means displays the electronic zoom image.
4. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein said control means records the subject image also at a step position near the specified angle of view.
5. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising display means for displaying a zoom image in accordance with the set angle of view.
6. The imaging apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising means for generating an electronic zoom image in accordance with the set angle of view, wherein said display means displays the electronic zoom image.
7. An imaging apparatus, comprising:
a first imaging optical system including an electronic zoom range constituting at least a part of a zoom range;
a second imaging optical system being a step-drive-type optical zoom, wherein an angle of view range of said zoom at least partially overlaps an angle of view range of the electronic zoom of said first imaging optical system;
angle of view specifying means for specifying the angle of view of said zoom,
picture taking command means for performing picture taking command, and
control means for performing, in a case where the angle of view specified by said angle of view specifying means is located within the overlapping range, a step drive of said second imaging optical system in the specified angle of view direction to record a subject image at a time point of passing a set zoom position when the picture taking command is performed.
8. The imaging apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein a wide end of said first imaging optical system is set to be wider than a wide end of said second imaging optical system.
9. The imaging apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein
said angle of view specifying means is means for specifying an angle of view continuously or at a width finer than a width of the step drive, and
said control means controls step positions of said second imaging optical system so as to follow a neighborhood of the specified angle of view when the angle of view of the electronic zoom is specified in the overlapping range, and performs the step drive in the direction of the specified angle of view from the neighborhood step position to record the subject image at a time point of passing the set angle of view when the picture taking command is performed.
10. The imaging apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein said control means records the subject image also at a step position near the specified angle of view.
11. An imaging apparatus, comprising:
a first imaging optical system and a second imaging optical system, both performing a step drive of an angle of view of a zoom, wherein angle of view ranges of the zooms at least partially overlap;
angle of view specifying means for specifying the angle of view of the zoom;
picture taking command means for performing picture taking command; and
control means for performing, in a case where the angle of view specified by said angle of view specifying means is located in the overlapping range, the step drive of either of said first imaging optical system and said second imaging optical system in a direction of the specified angle of view to record a subject image at a time point of passing the specified angle of view when the picture taking command is performed.
12. The imaging apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein said control means drives the one of said first imaging optical system and said second imaging optical system located at a position nearer to the specified angle of view to record the subject image.