Image pickup apparatus with brightness distribution chart display capability

• US 7,271,838 B2
• Filed: 04/30/2003
• Issued: 09/18/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.), OM Digital Solutions Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: Watanabe, Hiroyuki, Fujii, Takashi, Yukitake, Akira, Totsuka, Masami, Suekane, Hisashi, Yokokawa, Koh
• Primary Examiner(s): Srivastava; Vivek
• Assistant Examiner(s): SELBY, GEVELL V
• Application Number:
  US10/426,186
• Publication Number:
  US 20040042791A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,602 Days
• Field of Search: 348/333.01, 348/333.02, 348/229.1, 348/221.1, 348/234
• US Class Current: 348/333.02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/61 based on recognised objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/635 Region indicators; Field of view indicators
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/71 Circuitry for evaluating the brightness variation

Abstract

An image pickup apparatus includes an image pickup unit for outputting an electronic subject image, a metering unit for computing a metering value from the subject image, a brightness distribution chart generation unit for generating a brightness distribution chart from the subject image, and a display unit for overlaying the brightness distribution chart on the subject image and displaying them, and provides the brightness distribution chart for the display unit in various styles.

Claims

1. An image pickup apparatus, comprising:

an image pickup unit outputting an electronic subject image;

a display unit displaying the subject image;

an entire chart generation unit generating an entire brightness distribution chart which shows a brightness distribution of an entire range of the subject image;

a partial chart generation unit generating a partial brightness distribution chart which shows the brightness distribution of a partial range of the subject image; and

a control unit simultaneously controlling the entire brightness distribution chart and the partial brightness distribution chart on the display unit;

wherein said control unit allows a predetermined display to be realized in a position inside or near the partial brightness distribution chart and corresponding to an average brightness value in a partial range of a subject image whose partial brightness distribution chart is to generated.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

said control unit controls the partial brightness distribution chart to be overlaid on the entire brightness distribution chart in a corresponding position and displayed on said display unit.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

said partial chart generation unit generates a partial brightness distribution chart based on a metering range for determination of an exposure condition specified for the subject image displayed on said display unit.

4. The apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising

a change unit changing the metering range, wherein

said partial chart generation unit generates a partial brightness distribution chart depending on a metering range after the change.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

said partial chart generation unit generates a partial brightness distribution chart based on s focusing range for detection of focus.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

a partial range setting unit setting a partial range in which the partial brightness distribution chart is generated.

7. A method of displaying a brightness distribution chart, comprising:

generating an entire brightness distribution chart indicating a brightness distribution of an entire range of an electronically picked up subject image, and a partial brightness distribution chart indicating a brightness distribution of a partial range of the subject image;

overlaying the partial brightness distribution chart on the entire brightness distribution chart it in a corresponding position and displaying the two brightness distribution charts on a display; and

allowing a predetermined display to be realized in a position inside or near the partial brightness distribution chart and corresponding to an average brightness value in a partial range of a subject image whose partial brightness distribution chart is to be generated.

8. A computer-readable medium having stored thereon a computer program comprising a set of instructions when executed by a computer to implement a method for allowing a display unit to display an electronic subject image, the method comprising the steps of:

generating an entire brightness distribution chart indicating a brightness distribution of an entire range of the subject image;

generating a partial brightness distribution chart indicating a brightness distribution of a partial range of the subject image;

end

controlling the display unit to display the partial brightness distribution chart and the entire brightness distribution chart by overlaying the partial brightness distribution chart over the entire brightness distribution chart in a corresponding position; and

allowing a predetermined display to be realized in a position inside or near the partial brightness distribution chart and corresponding to an average brightness value in a partial range of a subject image whose partial brightness distribution chart is to be generated.

9. An image pickup apparatus, comprising

an image pickup unit outputting an electronic shot image;

a metering unit computing a metering value from the shot image;

a brightness distribution chart generation unit generating a distribution chart of brightness values from the shot image; and

a display unit displaying the brightness distribution chart, wherein

said display unit displays a metering values obtained by metering a plurality of points by said metering unit near a brightness value of the brightness distribution chart corresponding to the metering value, and in places of respective corresponding brightness values.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein:

said display unit comprises a display control unit for controlling as to whether or not the metering value is to be displayed;

when the metering value is not to be displayed, said brightness distribution chart generation unit generates an axis relating to a brightness value of the brightness distribution chart as a linear axis.

11. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein

said display unit displays an axis for display of a metering value along an axis relating to a brightness value of the brightness distribution chart, and displays a plurality of metering values corresponding to the axis for display of the metering value.

12. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein

said brightness distribution chart generation unit comprises a conversion unit for canceling the tone converting process on a shot image handled in a tone converting process.

13. A method for displaying a brightness distribution chart, comprising:

generating a brightness distribution chart obtained by representing a brightness axis as a logarithm based on a shot image output from an image pickup unit;

computing a metering value obtained by metering a plurality of points from the shot image; and

displaying the metering value obtained by metering a plurality of points, together with the generated brightness distribution chart, near a brightness value of the brightness distribution chart corresponding to the metering value, and in places of respective corresponding brightness values.

14. An image pickup apparatus, comprising:

an image pickup unit outputting image data for recording or image data for a through image;

a brightness distribution chart generation unit generating a brightness distribution chart based on the output image data; and

a shot image check unit displaying an image based on the output image data and the brightness distribution chart on a display unit; and

an instruction unit determining whether or not to remove the brightness distribution chart from the display immediately after the shooting, wherein

said shot image check unit displays a brightness distribution chart generated based on the image data for recording only for a predetermined time immediately after shooting; and

when the instruction to remove the brightness distribution chart from the display immediately after the shooting is issued, said shot image check unit displays only the image for a period shorter than the predetermined time as compared with a case in which an image and a brightness distribution chart are displayed.

15. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein

said shot image check unit stops the display in the predetermined time when a predetermined operation is performed.

16. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein

image data for the through image is configured by a number of pixels smaller than image data for recording.