JP2004247807A - Recording method and image reproducing method for group image - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To record all group images continuously taken with specified intervals and an optimum image among the group images identifiably as a typical image. <P>SOLUTION: An object is auto-bracketing-photographed (step S18) to obtain a series of images (group images) and the images are temporarily stored in a work memory (step S20). A typical image among the group images is automatically determined (step S28). The typical image among the group images obtained by the auto-bracketing photograph is determined so as to include a minimum number of pixels showing black regions and a minimum number of pixels showing white regions in the image. The group images are stored on a memory card, and a flag is attached to the tag of a still image file for storing other images than the typical one, thereby identifiably recording the typical image and the other images (step S30). <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a group image recording method and an image reproduction method, and more particularly to a recording method and a reproduction method for a series of images (group images) obtained during auto bracketing shooting and continuous shooting.
[0002]
[Prior art]
An image taken by auto bracketing of a camera includes a plurality of exposure values including an appropriate exposure value obtained based on the brightness of the subject, an exposure value that is underexposed and overexposed than the appropriate exposure value. The images are obtained by continuously photographing each subject with the exposure value, and are similar images with different exposure conditions.
[0003]
Conventionally, the exposure amount in auto bracketing shooting is determined based on the luminance information of the field and the latitude information of the film, and the necessary number of auto bracketing shooting is performed with an effective exposure amount without wasting the film. A camera that can perform the above has been proposed (Patent Document 1).
[0004]
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228561 describes a best shot selector (BSS) mode in which a camera automatically determines and records an image with the least blur among a series of images obtained by continuous shooting.
[0005]
[Patent Document 1]
JP 2000-75342 A
[0006]
[Patent Document 2]
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-212376
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
If you want to check the auto bracketing shot image quickly and quickly, if you only check the angle of view, it is sufficient to see the first frame, but a series of images will be played back in frame-by-frame playback etc. There is an annoying problem. In addition, when searching for images with appropriate exposure from a series of images taken with auto bracketing, the only way to do this is to display the histogram of each image and compare them quantitatively, or replay the images on the monitor and compare them sensuously. It was.
[0008]
Note that when shooting in the BSS mode described in Patent Document 2, only the best shot image automatically determined by the camera is recorded in the series of continuously shot images, so that all the series of images are played back during playback. However, there is a problem that the image determined by the camera as the best shot is not always the best shot image for the user.
[0009]
An object of the present invention is to record all group images obtained by continuously capturing images at a predetermined interval, and to record an optimal image among the group images so as to be identifiable as a representative image. It is to provide a recording method.
[0010]
Another object of the present invention is that when an image to be reproduced belongs to a group image, only the representative image of the group image is displayed, and reproduction of an image other than the representative image can be skipped. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an image reproduction method capable of reproducing an image other than the representative image.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is a group image recording method obtained by continuously photographing a subject at a predetermined interval,
(A) determining a representative image from the group image;
(B) recording the selected representative image and another image on a recording medium in an identifiable manner;
It is characterized by including.
[0012]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the group image recording method according to the first aspect, the group image is a series of images acquired by auto bracketing photographing, and the step (a) includes the series of images. The image that minimizes the sum of the number of blackout pixels and the number of whiteout pixels, or the product sum obtained by multiplying the number of blackout pixels and the number of whiteout pixels by a different coefficient, is determined as the representative image. It is a feature.
[0013]
The group image recording method according to claim 2, wherein there are a plurality of images in which the sum of the number of blackout pixels and the number of whiteout pixels in the series of images is zero. Is characterized in that the representative image is the image whose luminance level of the maximum luminance distribution is closest to the target level of automatic exposure control determined by the camera.
[0014]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the group image recording method according to the first aspect, the group image is a series of images obtained by continuous shooting, and the step (a) includes a blur of the series of images. Is determined as the representative image. Note that, for an image with the smallest blur, for example, image processing for obtaining an integrated value of high-frequency components is performed for each image, and an image with the largest integrated value can be set as an image with the smallest blur.
[0015]
6. The group image recording method according to claim 1, wherein the step (b) includes a predetermined area in which auxiliary information of an image file in which an image other than the determined representative image is recorded is recorded. It is characterized by setting a flag.
[0016]
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the group image recording method of the first aspect, the step (b) records the determined representative image first among the group images.
[0017]
The invention according to claim 7 is an image reproduction method applied to the group image recording method according to any one of claims 1 to 6 and reproducing an image including the group image recorded on the recording medium, When the image to be reproduced belongs to the group image, only the representative image of the group image is reproduced. This makes it possible to avoid wasteful reproduction when checking a series of images quickly, especially by making the representative image the optimum image, thereby avoiding reproduction of the same type of image that is inferior to the optimum image. can do.
[0018]
The invention according to claim 8 is an image reproduction method for reproducing an image of a recording medium on which an image including a group image obtained by continuously photographing a subject at a predetermined interval is recorded.
(A) determining whether an image to be reproduced belongs to a group image;
(B) If it is determined that the image to be reproduced belongs to the group image, a step of determining a representative image of the group image;
(C) When it is determined that the image to be reproduced belongs to the group image and is determined to be a representative image of the group image, the representative image is reproduced, and an image other than the representative image of the group image is reproduced. Step to skip playback,
It is characterized by including.
[0019]
According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the image reproducing method according to the eighth aspect, the step (a) includes determining whether the image to be reproduced belongs to the group image based on the attached information of the image file in which the image is recorded. It is characterized by distinguishing. As the attached information, information indicating the shooting mode and shooting date and time of the group image can be used.
[0020]
According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the image reproduction method according to the eighth or ninth aspect, the group image is a series of images obtained by auto bracketing photographing, and the step (b) includes the series of images. The image that minimizes the sum of the number of blackout pixels and the number of whiteout pixels, or the product sum obtained by multiplying the number of blackout pixels and the number of whiteout pixels by a different coefficient, is determined as the representative image. It is a feature. That is, among the group images that have been subjected to auto bracketing photography, an image with the smallest blackout or whiteout is used as a representative image.
[0021]
In the image reproduction method according to claim 10, when there are a plurality of images in which the sum of the number of blackout pixels and the number of whiteout pixels in the series of images is zero. An image having a luminance level of the maximum luminance distribution closest to a target level of automatic exposure control determined by the camera is used as a representative image.
[0022]
As shown in claim 12, in the image reproduction method according to claim 8 or 9, the group image is a series of images obtained by auto bracketing photographing, and the step (b) includes the series of images. An image captured with an optimum exposure value obtained based on the brightness of the subject is determined as a representative image.
[0023]
According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image reproduction method according to the eighth or ninth aspect, the group image is a series of images acquired by continuous shooting, and the step (b) includes a blur of the series of images. Is determined as the representative image.
[0024]
According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image reproducing method according to the seventh or eighth aspect, when the representative image of the group image is reproduced at the time of single frame reproduction, the information indicating that the reproduced image is the representative image of the group image is displayed. It is characterized by displaying simultaneously. As a result, it can be understood that if frame advance or the like is performed during reproduction of the representative image, reproduction of other images belonging to the same group image as the representative image is skipped.
[0025]
According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image reproduction method of the seventh, eighth, or fourteenth aspect, reproduction of an image other than the representative image of the group image when the representative image of the group image is displayed. When there is an instruction input for instructing, an image other than the representative image is reproduced. For example, by performing a frame advance operation different from an operation for performing a normal frame advance operation, each image constituting the group image is reproduced in the group image.
[0026]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The preferred embodiments of the group image recording method and image reproducing method according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0027]
FIG. 1 is a rear view of a digital camera to which a group image recording method and an image reproduction method according to the present invention are applied. A shooting mode selection dial 11 and a shutter button 12 are provided on the upper surface of the digital camera 10. The shooting mode selection dial 11 can be rotated to set any shooting mode among a continuous shooting / bracketing mode, a manual shooting mode, an auto shooting mode, a portrait mode, a landscape mode, and a night view mode. ing.
[0028]
A shutter button 12 provided at the center of the shooting mode selection dial 11 is turned on when the shutter button is half-pressed to perform preparation for shooting such as focus lock and photometry, and is turned on when the shutter button 12 is fully pressed to capture an image. And a switch S2 to be operated.
[0029]
As shown in FIG. 1, on the back of the digital camera 10, a viewfinder 13, a display button 14, a power switch 15, a shooting / playback mode selection switch 16, a back switch 17, a menu / OK switch 18, a multifunction cross key 19, A dot matrix liquid crystal display 20 and a liquid crystal monitor 21 are provided.
[0030]
The liquid crystal display 20 displays the operation mode of the camera, the function of the cross key 19 and the like with characters and icons. The liquid crystal monitor 21 can display a moving image (through image) and can be used as an electronic viewfinder, and can also display a captured image before recording (preview image), a reproduced image read from a memory card loaded in the camera, and the like. can do. Further, the LCD monitor 21 displays a menu / OK switch for various menus for manually setting the display of the number of frames that can be shot and the number of playback frames, white balance when manually setting, the number of pixels, the compression rate, and the sharpness. 18 and the cross key 19 are displayed.
[0031]
It should be noted that the auto bracketing shooting mode according to the present invention is set to ± as the exposure correction amount by selecting the continuous shooting / bracketing mode with the shooting mode selection dial 11 and further operating the menu / OK switch 18 or the cross key 19. This is performed by selecting a desired correction amount such as 0.5 EV or ± 1 EV. The continuous shooting mode is set by selecting the continuous shooting / bracketing mode with the shooting mode selection dial 11, and further selecting the 0 EV correction amount as the exposure correction amount by operating the menu / OK switch 18 or the cross key 19. Is done by.
[0032]
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of the digital camera 10 shown in FIG.
[0033]
In the figure, the main CPU 22 operates including the above-described shooting mode selection dial 11, shutter button 12, power switch 15, shooting / playback mode selection switch 16, back switch 17, menu / OK switch 18, and cross key 19. Based on the input from the switch 24, each circuit in the digital camera 10 is comprehensively controlled. The main CPU 22 exchanges necessary data with the SDRAM (Synchronous Dynamic RAM) 26, the ROM 28, and the EEPROM 30. The ROM 28 stores a camera control program and the like, and the EEPROM 30 stores various parameters and data relating to camera control such as defect information of the solid-state imaging device.
[0034]
First, when the power switch 15 is operated, the CPU 22 detects this and turns on the power in the camera. When the shooting mode is selected by the shooting / playback mode selection switch 16, the shooting standby state is set.
[0035]
When the shutter button 12 is pressed in the shooting standby state, the CPU 22 detects this and sends a command to the camera CPU 32. The camera CPU 32 performs focus control, photometry, and exposure control, and forms an image of the subject image on the light receiving surface of the solid-state image sensor (CCD) 36 via the optical unit 34. The CCD 36 converts the image light imaged on the light receiving surface into a signal charge in an amount corresponding to the light amount. The signal charges accumulated in this way are read out to the shift register by a read gate pulse applied from the clock generation circuit 38, and sequentially read out as a voltage signal corresponding to the signal charge by a register transfer pulse. The CCD 36 has a so-called electronic shutter function that can sweep out the accumulated signal charge by a shutter gate pulse, thereby controlling the charge accumulation time (shutter speed).
[0036]
The voltage signal output from the CCD 36 is subjected to analog processing such as correlated double sampling and amplification by the analog processing circuit 40, and then applied to the A / D converter 42 as R, G, and B signals for each pixel. . The A / D converter 42 converts the R, G, and B signals sequentially added from the analog processing circuit 40 into 12-bit R, G, and B signals, respectively. These R, G, and B signals are temporarily stored in the SDRAM 26 as a work memory.
[0037]
The image signal processing circuit 44 reads the 12-bit R, G, and B raw data stored in the SDRAM 26, applies a digital gain corresponding to the light source type to these, and adjusts the white balance, and gamma (gradation). Tone characteristics) processing and sharpness processing are performed to generate 8-bit R, G, B signals, and further YC signal processing is performed to generate luminance signal Y and chroma signals Cr, Cb (YC signal), and the YC signal is The data is stored in the SDRAM 26 again.
[0038]
The YC signal stored in the SDRAM 26 as described above is compressed into a predetermined format by the compression / decompression circuit 46 and then recorded on the memory card 50 via the interface circuit 48.
[0039]
On the other hand, when the playback mode is selected by the shooting / playback mode selection switch 16, the image file of the last frame recorded on the memory card 50 is read out via the interface circuit 48. The compressed data of the read image file is expanded into an uncompressed YC signal via the compression / decompression circuit 46.
[0040]
The decompressed YC signal is applied to the video encoder 54 via the VRAM 52, where it is converted into an NTSC color composite video signal and output to the liquid crystal monitor 21. As a result, the last frame image recorded in the memory card 50 is displayed on the liquid crystal monitor 21.
[0041]
Thereafter, when the forward frame advance switch (the right key of the cross key 19) is pressed, the frame is advanced in the forward direction, and when the reverse frame advance switch (the left key of the cross key 19) is pressed, the frame is advanced in the reverse direction. . Then, the frame-positioned image file at the frame position is read from the memory card 50, and the frame image is reproduced on the liquid crystal monitor 21 in the same manner as described above. When the last frame image is displayed and the frame is advanced in the forward direction, the first frame image file recorded on the memory card 50 is read and the first frame image is displayed on the LCD. It is reproduced on the monitor 21. Details of this image reproduction will be described later.
[0042]
Next, a group image recording method according to the present invention will be described. Here, the group image refers to a series of images obtained by continuous shooting or auto bracketing shooting in which a predetermined number of subjects are continuously shot at fixed intervals, and the processing at the time of auto bracketing shooting will be described below. .
[0043]
When the auto bracketing shooting mode is selected as the shooting mode of the digital camera 10, auto bracketing shooting for shooting a plurality of images (three images in this embodiment) by changing the exposure with one shutter release is performed. Done.
[0044]
That is, as shown in FIG. 3, it is determined whether or not the shutter button 12 has been half-pressed (switch S1 is turned on) (step S10). S12). Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the shutter button 12 has been fully pressed (switch S2 is ON) (step S14). If the switch S2 is not ON, it is determined whether or not the switch S1 is ON (step S14). S16). If the switch S1 is turned on in step S16, the process returns to step S14 to determine whether or not the switch S2 is turned on. If the switch S1 is turned off, the process returns to step S10.
[0045]
When the switch S2 is turned on in step S14, auto bracketing shooting is executed (step S18).
[0046]
In the auto bracketing shooting in step S18, first, an appropriate exposure value is determined based on the brightness of the subject measured in step S12, and a correction amount (for example, ±±) set in advance by the user with respect to the appropriate exposure value is determined. 0.5 EV), an exposure value smaller than the proper exposure value by 0.5 EV and an exposure value larger than the proper exposure value by 0.5 EV are determined. Based on these three types of exposure values, three images are taken at predetermined intervals (for example, 0.2 seconds) in the order of -exposure, proper exposure, and + exposure. Note that the shooting order may be set in the order of proper exposure, -exposure, + exposure by the camera, or may be custom-set.
[0047]
As described above, the 8-bit YC signal generated from the R, G, and B signals of the three images is temporarily stored in the SDRAM 26 (hereinafter referred to as work memory) (step S20). A preview image is displayed on the liquid crystal monitor 21 (step S22). The user operates the operation switch 24 while viewing each image displayed on the liquid crystal monitor 21 to instruct whether or not to record in the memory card 50.
[0048]
That is, it is determined whether or not the menu / OK switch 18 has been pressed (step S24). Here, when the back switch 17 is pressed, data such as an image temporarily recorded in the work memory is cleared (step S26), and the process returns to step S10. On the other hand, when the menu / OK switch 18 is pressed, a representative image is determined from among the three images that have been auto-bracketed and temporarily stored in the work memory (step S28).
[0049]
Next, a method for determining a representative image among the three images taken by auto bracketing will be described.
[0050]
A histogram indicating the density distribution of the luminance signal Y among the YC signals temporarily recorded in the work memory is created. 4 to 7 are graphs showing four patterns 1 to 4 of a histogram showing the density distribution of the luminance signal Y of three images each taken by auto bracketing.
[0051]
In the created histogram, the number of pixels a at level 0 (blackout) and the number b of pixels at level 255 (out-of-white) are obtained, and the sum (a + b) of these pixel numbers a and b is calculated. Then, the order is set in ascending order of (a + b), and the smallest image is set as the optimum image (representative image). In general, whiteout is more important than blackout, and attention is often paid. Therefore, the product sum (weighting is used for weighting) that is different from the number of blackout and whiteout pixels. A more realistic ranking can be performed by a difference algorithm).
[0052]
In the case of the pattern 1 in which blackout occurs as shown in FIG. 4, the third frame having the histogram indicated by the broken line is the representative image, and the pattern 2 in which whiteout occurs as shown in FIG. In this case, the first frame having the histogram indicated by the solid line is the representative image, and in the case of the pattern 3 in which blackout and whiteout are mixed as shown in FIG. 6, the third frame having the histogram indicated by the broken line. Is the representative image.
[0053]
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7, in the case of the pattern 4 in which neither blackout nor whiteout occurs (that is, a + b = 0), the value of the level with the most distribution is compared, and the automatic exposure determined by the camera The image close to the control target level is used as the representative image. For example, if the target level is 110, the level with the most distribution in the first frame is 100, the second frame is 112, and the third frame is 125, the second frame having the histogram indicated by the dotted line is the representative image.
[0054]
When the representative image is determined as described above, the YC signal of each image temporarily stored in the work memory is stored in the memory card 50 as a still image file by a compression / decompression method such as JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group). In the still image file of the image other than the representative image determined in step S28, a flag indicating that it is not a representative image is set in a predetermined area of the attached information (tag information) (step S30).
[0055]
FIG. 10 shows an example of the file structure of a still image file of three images taken by auto bracketing. As shown in the figure, the tag information recording area is provided with an area for recording a file name, shooting date, shooting mode, flag, and the like. The flags “1” are set on the first and third sheets 10 (A) and (B).
[0056]
Also, the still image file shown in FIG. 10 has a file name automatically generated according to a naming rule of DCF (Design rule for Camera File system: unified recording format of digital camera). Also, the shooting date is recorded to the second, rounded off to the second, and the shooting modes include auto bracketing mode, continuous shooting mode, manual shooting mode, auto shooting mode, portrait mode, A landscape mode or a night view mode is recorded. In the example shown in FIG. 10, the auto bracketing mode is recorded as the shooting mode. In the auto bracketing mode or the continuous shooting mode, information indicating the number of frames in a series of shooting may be recorded as tag information.
[0057]
In this embodiment, a flag is set in a predetermined area of tag information of a still image file in which an image other than the representative image is recorded. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and at least the representative image and other images are included. For example, the representative image may be recorded first among the group images.
[0058]
In this embodiment, a group image acquired by auto bracketing shooting has been described. However, a similar recording method can be applied to a group image acquired by shooting in continuous shooting mode. As the representative image in this case, for example, the image with the least blur is determined as the representative image of the group image. For the image with the least blur, image processing for obtaining the integrated value of the high-frequency component is performed for each image, and the image with the largest integrated value can be made the image with the minimum blur.
[0059]
Further, the user may confirm the group image on a monitor, and the user may determine a representative image of the group images and give an instruction for the representative image.
[0060]
Next, an image reproduction method according to the present invention will be described.
[0061]
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a reproduction procedure in the case of reproducing an image including a group image in which a flag is set in a still image file of an image other than the representative image.
[0062]
When the playback mode is selected by the shooting / playback mode selection switch 16, the image recorded on the memory card 50 is played back.
[0063]
As shown in FIG. 8, the frame number of the last frame recorded on the memory card 50 is set to N, the frame number of the playback frame is set to i, and i = N at the start of playback (step S40). The frame number is a sequential number from the first frame to the Nth frame.
[0064]
It is determined whether or not a flag indicating an image other than the representative image is set in the still image file with frame number i (step S42). If it is determined that the flag is set, the frame number i of the playback frame is decremented by 1 (step S44), and the process returns to step S42.
[0065]
On the other hand, when it is determined that the flag is not set (that is, when it is determined that the image of frame number i is an image recorded at the time of normal one-frame shooting or a representative image of group images). The image of the still image file with the frame number i is reproduced (step S46).
[0066]
Next, it is determined whether or not the reverse frame advance switch (the left key of the cross key 19) has been pressed (step S48). If affirmative, the frame number i is decreased by 1 (step S50). When a representative image is displayed in step S46, the frame number i obtained in step S50 is a frame number that is 1 smaller than the smallest frame number of the group images to which the representative image belongs.
[0067]
Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the frame number i obtained in step S50 is 0 (step S52). If negative, the process jumps to step S56, and if positive, the frame number i is changed to the frame number N of the last frame. (Step S54).
[0068]
In step S56, it is determined whether or not a flag is set in the image file with the updated frame number i. If the flag is set, the process returns to step S50 to update the frame number i and the flag is not set. In that case, the process proceeds to step S46, and the image of the current frame number i is reproduced. By repeating this, the image recorded on the memory card 50 is played back in the reverse direction, and only the representative image is played back when the playback frame belongs to the group image.
[0069]
On the other hand, if the reverse frame advance switch is not pressed in step S48, it is determined whether or not the forward frame advance switch (the right key of the cross key 19) is pressed (step S58). i is increased by 1 (step S60). When a representative image is displayed in step S46, the frame number i obtained in step S60 is a frame number that is one larger than the largest frame number among the group images to which the representative image belongs.
[0070]
Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the frame number i obtained in step S60 is N + 1 (step S62). If the result is negative, the process jumps to step S66. If the result is positive, the frame number i is changed to the frame number 1 of the first frame. (Step S64).
[0071]
In step S66, it is determined whether or not a flag is set in the image file with the updated frame number i. If the flag is set, the process returns to step S60 to update the frame number i and the flag is not set. In that case, the process proceeds to step S46, and the image of the current frame number i is reproduced. By repeating this, the image recorded on the memory card 50 is played back in the forward direction, and only the representative image is played back when the playback frame belongs to the group image.
[0072]
If the reverse frame advance switch or the forward frame advance switch is not pressed, it is determined whether or not there is an instruction to end the reproduction (step S68). If there is no instruction to end the reproduction, the process returns to step S46 to end the reproduction. When instructed, playback ends.
[0073]
Next, an image reproduction method in the case where information for identifying a representative image of the group images and other images is not recorded will be described.
[0074]
As shown in the flowchart of FIG. 9, first, the frame number of the last frame recorded in the memory card 50 is set to N, the frame number of the playback frame is set to i, and i = N at the start of playback (step S70).
[0075]
Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the image with frame number i belongs to the group image (step S72). This determination can be made based on, for example, whether the tag information indicating the still image file shooting mode shown in FIG. 10 is auto bracketing or continuous shooting. In addition, since a plurality of sets of group images may be continuously recorded on the memory card 50, it is necessary to determine whether they belong to the same group image or other group images. Whether or not they are the same group image can be determined based on, for example, tag information of the shooting time of the still image file. If consecutive numbers such as 1, 2, 3, etc. are assigned to the images in the same group image, it is possible to determine whether or not they are the same group from the consecutive numbers.
[0076]
If it is determined in step S72 that the image of frame number i belongs to the group image, a representative image of the group image is determined (step S74). When the group image is a series of images taken by auto bracketing, the representative image is determined by the method described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 7, and when the group image is a series of images continuously shot, The image with the minimum blur is determined as the representative image.
[0077]
On the other hand, if it is determined in step S72 that the image of frame number i does not belong to the group image, the process jumps to step S76.
[0078]
In step S76, if the image to be reproduced belongs to the group image, only the representative image determined in step S74 is displayed, and if it does not belong to the group image, the image of frame number i is displayed.
[0079]
Next, it is determined whether or not the reverse frame advance switch has been pressed (step S78). If the determination is affirmative, the frame number i is decreased by 1 (step S80). When the representative image is displayed in step S76, the frame number i obtained in step S80 is set to a frame number smaller by 1 than the smallest frame number of the group images to which the representative image belongs.
[0080]
Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the frame number i obtained in step S80 is 0 (step S82). If the result is negative, the process returns to step S72. After that (step S84), the process returns to step S72.
[0081]
On the other hand, if the reverse frame advance switch is not pressed in step S78, it is determined whether or not the forward frame advance switch is pressed (step S86). If the result is affirmative, the frame number i is incremented by 1 (step S88). ). When a representative image is displayed in step S76, the frame number i obtained in step S88 is a frame number that is 1 larger than the largest frame number of the group images to which the representative image belongs.
[0082]
Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the frame number i obtained in step S88 is N + 1 (step S90). If the result is negative, the process returns to step S72. (Step S92), the process returns to Step S72.
[0083]
If the reverse frame advance switch or the forward frame advance switch is not pressed, it is determined whether or not there is a reproduction end instruction (step S94). If there is no reproduction end instruction, the process returns to step S76 to end the reproduction. When instructed, playback ends.
[0084]
In the image reproduction method described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 8 and 9, when the displayed image is a representative image of the group images, the upper right of the reproduced representative image is, for example, “B”. An identification mark is displayed so that it can be distinguished from a normal single frame image. Also, when an image other than the representative image is reproduced, when the representative image is displayed, pressing the down key or the up key of the cross key 19 allows reverse frame advance or forward frame advance in the group image. Let it play.
[0085]
In this embodiment, the case of frame-by-frame playback by manual operation has been described. However, in the case of slide show playback in which frame-by-frame playback is automatically performed at predetermined intervals, thumbnail images of a plurality of frames are displayed on one screen. Also in the case of multi-screen playback displayed with, only representative images are displayed as group images.
[0086]
Furthermore, the determination of the representative image among the group images that have been subjected to auto bracketing is not limited to this embodiment, and for example, an image captured with an appropriate exposure value obtained based on the brightness of the subject may be used as the representative image. Good. In addition, the determination of the representative image of the group images that are continuously shot is not limited to this embodiment. For example, camera shake often occurs when the shutter button is pressed. The last image may be the representative image.
[0087]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, all the group images obtained by continuous shooting at a predetermined interval by auto bracketing shooting or continuous shooting are recorded, and the optimum image among the group images is recorded. It can be recorded as a representative image so that it can be identified. This eliminates the trouble of searching for a properly exposed image or an image with less blur among the group images. For example, one of the group images can be printed. When placing an order, it can be used as a guideline for selecting an optimal image for printing, or it can be used as a guideline for an image to be deleted when the storage capacity of the camera recording medium is full.
[0088]
Further, according to the present invention, when an image to be reproduced belongs to a group image, only the representative image of the group image can be displayed, and reproduction of images other than the representative image can be skipped. It is possible to avoid the annoyance that all the images are reproduced, and it is also possible to reproduce images other than the representative image as necessary.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a rear view of a digital camera to which a group image recording method and an image reproducing method according to the present invention are applied.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of the digital camera.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart used to describe an embodiment of a group image recording method according to the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a graph showing a histogram of each image used for explaining a method of determining a representative image among group images taken by auto bracketing.
FIG. 5 is a graph showing a histogram of each image used for explaining a method of determining a representative image among group images taken by auto bracketing.
FIG. 6 is a graph showing a histogram of each image used for explaining a method of determining a representative image among group images taken by auto bracketing.
FIG. 7 is a graph showing a histogram of each image used for explaining a method of determining a representative image among group images taken by auto bracketing.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart used to describe an embodiment of a group image reproduction method according to the present invention;
FIG. 9 is a flowchart used to explain another embodiment of the group image reproduction method according to the present invention;
FIG. 10 is a file configuration diagram showing an example of a still image file of a group image recorded by the group image recording method according to the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Digital camera, 11 ... Shooting mode selection dial, 12 ... Shutter button, 17 ... Back switch, 18 ... Menu / OK switch, 19 ... Cross key, 21 ... LCD monitor, 22 ... Main CPU, 26 ... SDRAM, 34 ... Optical unit 36 ... CCD 44 ... Image signal processing circuit 46 ... Compression / decompression circuit 50 ... Memory card

Claims (15)

A method for recording a group image obtained by continuously photographing a subject at a predetermined interval,
(A) determining a representative image from the group image;
(B) recording the determined representative image and another image on a recording medium in an identifiable manner;
A group image recording method. The group image is a series of images acquired by auto bracketing shooting, and the step (a) includes the sum of the number of blackout pixels and the number of overexposure pixels in the series of images, or blackout 2. The group image recording method according to claim 1, wherein an image having a minimum sum of products obtained by multiplying different coefficients between the number of pixels and the number of whiteout pixels is determined as a representative image. When there are a plurality of images in which the sum of the number of blackout pixels and the number of whiteout pixels is 0 in the series of images, the luminance level of the maximum luminance distribution is determined by the automatic exposure control determined by the camera. 3. The group image recording method according to claim 2, wherein an image closest to the target level is used as a representative image. The group image is a series of images acquired by continuous shooting, and the step (a) determines an image with the smallest blur among the series of images as a representative image. Group image recording method. 2. The group image recording method according to claim 1, wherein said step (b) sets a flag in a predetermined area in which auxiliary information of an image file in which an image other than the determined representative image is recorded is recorded. 2. The group image recording method according to claim 1, wherein said step (b) records said determined representative image first among group images. An image reproduction method applied to the group image recording method according to claim 1 for reproducing an image including a group image recorded on the recording medium,
An image reproducing method, wherein, when an image to be reproduced belongs to a group image, only a representative image of the group image is reproduced. In an image reproduction method for reproducing an image of a recording medium on which an image including a group image obtained by continuously photographing a subject at a predetermined interval is recorded,
(A) determining whether an image to be reproduced belongs to a group image;
(B) If it is determined that the image to be reproduced belongs to the group image, a step of determining a representative image of the group image;
(C) When it is determined that the image to be reproduced belongs to the group image and is determined to be a representative image of the group image, the representative image is reproduced, and an image other than the representative image of the group image is reproduced. Step to skip playback,
An image reproduction method comprising: 9. The image reproducing method according to claim 8, wherein the step (a) determines whether or not an image to be reproduced belongs to a group image based on the attached information of the image file in which the image is recorded. The group image is a series of images acquired by auto bracketing shooting, and the step (b) includes the sum of the number of blackout pixels and the number of overexposure pixels in the series of images, or blackout 10. The image reproducing method according to claim 8, wherein an image having a minimum sum of products obtained by multiplying different coefficients by the number of pixels and the number of whiteout pixels is determined as a representative image. When there are a plurality of images in which the sum of the number of blackout pixels and the number of whiteout pixels in the series of images is zero, the luminance level of the maximum luminance distribution is determined by the automatic exposure control determined by the camera. The image reproduction method according to claim 10, wherein an image closest to the target level is used as a representative image. The group image is a series of images obtained by auto bracketing photography, and the step (b) is an image photographed with an optimal exposure value obtained based on the brightness of a subject in the series of images. 10. The image reproduction method according to claim 8, wherein the image is determined as a representative image. The group image is a series of images acquired by continuous shooting, and the step (b) determines an image with the smallest blur among the series of images as a representative image. 9. Image reproduction method of 9. 9. The image reproducing method according to claim 7, wherein information indicating that the reproduced image is a representative image of the group image is displayed at the same time when the representative image of the group image is reproduced during single frame reproduction. When a representative image of the group images is displayed and an instruction input is given to instruct the reproduction of an image other than the representative image of the group image, the image other than the representative image is reproduced. 15. The image reproducing method according to claim 7, 8 or 14.

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