JP4200575B2 - Digital camera - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a digital camera that records a subject as image data obtained by electronic image processing.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, a focus detection / adjustment device that drives a photographic lens to detect a focus, an imaging device such as a CCD that captures a subject image passing through the photographic lens and outputs image data, and an output from the imaging device An image processing circuit that performs image processing such as white balance and gamma correction on the image data, a monitor that displays the image processed data, and a flash memory that compresses the image processed data using a method such as JPEG A digital camera having a compression circuit for recording on a recording medium is known.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
When performing a shooting operation with such a conventional digital camera, image processing for shooting a subject image by a release operation and performing white balance adjustment, γ correction, etc. on image data output from the imaging device, and image processing By performing a compression process for compressing the processed data and a recording process for recording the compressed data on a recording medium, the next frame can be shot. In a broad sense, the image processing may be used in the meaning including compression processing and recording processing.
[0004]
In a digital camera capable of performing compression processing and recording processing to be recorded on a recording medium in parallel with the image processing described above, when the compression processing is completed due to the capacity of the buffer memory and the buffer memory is free, that is, the recording medium When the recording process starts, the next frame can be shot. Further, in the case of a digital camera having a large-capacity buffer memory, the next frame can be shot when predetermined image processing is completed. However, with the conventional digital camera, when the above image processing is completed, a captured image called a freeze image is displayed on the monitor, and when the recording process is completed, a real-time image called a through image is switched and displayed, and the next frame is captured. However, there was a problem that the possible timing could not be clearly specified.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The present invention is applied to a digital camera that captures a subject image with an imaging element through a photographing lens, performs predetermined image processing on the image data of the captured subject image, and records the image on a recording medium. Then, it is possible that the next frame shooting is possible by the next frame shooting enabled detection means for detecting that the next frame shooting is possible before the data after the image processing is recorded on the recording medium, and the next frame shooting enabled detection means. It is characterized by comprising notifying means for notifying when it is detected.
[0008]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1A and 1B show the external appearance of a digital still camera according to an embodiment of the present invention when stored and carried, where FIG. 1A is a view from above and FIG. 1B is a view from behind. Fig. 2 shows the appearance of the camera shown in Fig. 1 during normal shooting. (A) is a view from the front, (b) is a view from above, and (c) is a view from behind. is there. The digital still camera 1 according to this embodiment is divided into a lens unit 1a including a photographing zoom lens 2 and a monitor unit 1b including an LCD monitor 3, and both the units 1a and 1b are connected to be relatively rotatable. .
[0009]
When stored or carried, the lens unit 1a is rotated so that the lens unit 1a and the monitor unit 1b are flat as shown in FIG. Further, during normal photographing, as shown in FIG. 2, the lens unit 1a is rotated so that the photographing zoom lens 2 faces the subject. At this time, since the monitor unit 1b is held so that the LCD monitor 3 faces the photographer, the photographer can take a picture while looking at the LCD monitor 3.
[0010]
In addition to the photographing zoom lens 2, the lens unit 1a includes an electronic flash device 4, a finder window 5, a red-eye reduction / self-timer display lamp 6, a finder eyepiece window 7, a photographing processing display lamp 18, and the like. On the other hand, in addition to the LCD monitor 3, the monitor unit 1b includes a main switch 8, a release button 9, a display panel 10, a flash photography mode button 11, an AF mode button 12, an image quality mode button 13, a zoom switching button 14, a monitor button 15, A menu button 16, a selection dial 17, a buzzer 19, and the like are provided.
[0011]
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a circuit block of the digital still camera 1 according to this embodiment. The digital still camera 1 includes a main CPU 21 that controls focus detection / adjustment processing, photometry processing, and the like, an image processing CPU 29 that controls image processing and image display processing, and a switch control CPU 41 that controls input signals from each switch. It is controlled by. The switch control CPU 41 sends the information to the main CPU 21 when each switch of the digital still camera 1 is operated, and controls the zoom lens driving device 37 to operate the photographing zoom lens 2 when the zoom switching button 14 is operated. It is configured to drive.
[0012]
In the digital still camera 1, the photographing mode (REC) and the reproduction mode (PLAY) are selected by the switching operation of the main switch 8. The main switch 8 is switched to at least three positions: OFF, REC, and PLAY. The shooting mode is an operation mode in which the captured subject image is recorded as image data, and the reproduction mode is an operation mode in which the recorded image data is read and displayed on the LCD monitor 3. The description of this embodiment will be focused on the shooting mode.
[0013]
When the main switch 8 is switched to the shooting mode position, the digital still camera 1 is switched to the shooting mode when the power is turned on. When the photographing mode is switched, the subject light incident on the photographing zoom lens 2 is imaged on the CCD 26 which is an image pickup device, and the image signal is sent to the A / D conversion circuit 28 via the analog processing circuit 27 and converted into a digital signal. Converted. The digitally converted signal is guided to an image processing CPU 29 configured as an ASIC, for example, and image preprocessing such as contour compensation and gamma correction is performed and temporarily stored in the buffer memory 30.
[0014]
The image data stored in the buffer memory 30 is processed into display image data by a display image creation circuit 31 controlled by the image processing CPU 29. The display image creating circuit 31 reads the image data after image preprocessing stored in the buffer memory 30 and creates a display image by performing a thinning process according to the display resolution of the LCD monitor 3. The display image data created by the display image creation circuit 31 is displayed on the LCD monitor 3 as a photographing monitor screen called a through screen. The through screen is updated at predetermined intervals based on the subject light incident on the photographing zoom lens 2 by repeating the above operation.
[0015]
The switch control CPU 41 receives a half-press signal and a full-press signal from a half-press switch 22 and a full-press switch 23 (hereinafter referred to as the release switch 23) that are linked to the release button 9. When the half-push switch 22 is operated and a half-push signal is input, the switch control CPU 41 transmits the information to the main CPU 21, and the focus detection / adjustment device 36 receives the focus detection state of the photographic zoom lens 2 according to a command from the main CPU 21. Is detected. Then, the photographic zoom lens 2 is driven to the in-focus position so that the subject light incident on the photographic zoom lens 2 forms an image on the CCD 26 that is the imaging device. The CCD 26 is driven and controlled via the timing generator 24 and the driver 25, and the timing generator 24 controls the operation timing of the analog processing circuit 27 and the A / D conversion circuit 28.
[0016]
The digital still camera 1 is provided with two AF operation modes of “single AF mode” and “continuous AF mode”. When the “single AF mode” is set, the focus detection operation by the focus detection / adjustment device 36 is performed by operating the half-press switch 22 as described above, and the “continuous AF mode” is set. When the main switch 8 is switched to the photographing mode position, the focus detection operation by the focus detection / adjustment device 36 is always performed.
[0017]
When the zoom switching button 14 is operated, the zoom lens driving device 37 drives the photographing zoom lens 2 according to a command from the switch control CPU 41 to change the focal length. The zoom button 14 is a seesaw type switch, and the focal length is moved to either the telephoto side (T) or the wide angle side (W). The photometry device 38 measures the luminance of the subject, and performs photometry when a half-press signal from the half-press switch 22 interlocked with the release button 9 is input to the main CPU 21 via the switch control CPU 41.
[0018]
When the release switch 23 is turned on after the half-push switch 22 is turned on, the flash device 4 emits light according to the photometry result by the photometry device 38 and the mode setting preset by the flash photography mode button 11. As the subject light from the photographing zoom lens 2 forms an image on the light receiving surface of the CCD 26, signal charges corresponding to the brightness of the subject image are accumulated in the CCD 26. In addition, a shooting process lamp 18 indicating that the shooting process has started is displayed blinking. The signal charges accumulated in the CCD 26 are discharged by the driver 25 and input to an analog signal processing circuit 27 including an AGC circuit and a CDS circuit. The analog signal processing circuit 27 performs analog processing such as gain control and noise removal on the analog image signal, and then the digital signal is converted by the A / D conversion circuit 28.
[0019]
The digitally converted signal is guided to the image processing CPU 29 described above, where image preprocessing such as contour compensation and gamma correction is performed and temporarily stored in the buffer memory 30. Then, image data is exchanged between the main CPU 21 and the buffer memory 30, a white balance adjustment value is obtained from the stored image data, and the white balance adjustment is performed by the image processing CPU 29 based on the adjustment value. The image data after the white balance adjustment is stored in the buffer memory 30 again.
[0020]
The image data subjected to the image pre-processing as described above is further subjected to format processing (image post-processing) for JPEG compression by the image processing CPU 29, and is performed by the compression circuit 32 controlled by the image processing CPU 29. Data compression is performed at a predetermined ratio by the JPEG method. When the image data is subjected to data compression processing, the occupied area occupied by the compressed image data in the buffer memory 30 is reduced, so that the buffer memory 30 can accept new image data.
[0021]
Image data subjected to data compression in the JPEG format is given a predetermined data name by the main CPU 21 and is recorded on a recording medium (PC card, CF card, etc.) 34 such as a flash memory together with time information from the real time clock 35. . When the recording process on the recording medium 34 is finished, the blinking display of the photographing process lamp 18 is finished.
[0022]
In addition, a display panel driver 33 is connected to the main CPU 21 to display the flash mode setting by the flash photography mode button 11, the distance range setting by the AF mode button 12, and the compression rate setting by the image quality mode button 13. Displayed on the panel 10.
[0023]
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing details of the image processing CPU 29 in the digital camera operating as described above. FIG. 4 shows a line processing circuit 100 that processes the image data from the CCD 26 for each line, and performs the above-described image processing. The line processing circuit 100 shown in FIG. 4 performs various signal processing to be described later on the R, G, and B signals output from the A / D conversion circuit 28, and includes a defect correction circuit 101 and a digital clamp circuit 102. A black level circuit 103, a γ correction circuit 104, an average value calculation circuit 105, a gain circuit 106, and a white balance adjustment circuit 107.
[0024]
The defect correction circuit 101, the black level circuit 103, and the γ correction circuit 104 are well-known circuits, and descriptions thereof are omitted.
[0025]
The average value calculation circuit 105 extracts, for example, image data of a 512 × 512 area centered on the area used as the focus detection area from the image data of all areas once stored in the buffer memory 30 after γ correction. Then, the white signal adjusting gain Rgain for the R signal and the white signal adjusting gain Bgain for the B signal are calculated by the following equations (1) and (2), for example. The gains Rgain and Bgain are stored in a register of the main CPU 21. For example, when a color filter is arranged on a 512 × 512 pixel region, the average values of R, G, and B signals are calculated by equations (3) to (5), and equations (1) and (2) are obtained. As shown, white balance adjustment gains Rgain and Bgain are calculated from the ratio between the average value Gave of the G signal and the average value Rave of the R signal and the ratio of the average value Gave of the G signal and the average value Bave of the B signal.
[0026]
[Expression 1]
Rgain = Gave / Rave (1)
Bgain = Gave / Bave (2)
However, Rave = Rsum / Rpixel number (3)
Gave = Gsum / Gpixel number (4)
Bave = Bsum / Bpixel number (5)
According to such an average value method, the average value of the gradations of the RGB signals of the image data is obtained, and the white balance adjustment result (overall white balance) is empirically improved. That is, adjustment values such as R gain and B gain for white balance adjustment are determined so that the average color temperature of the screen approaches white, and white balance adjustment is performed based on the white balance adjustment value.
[0027]
The gain circuit 106 is used for white balance adjustment so that the white balance adjustment described above is performed point-sequentially for each line corresponding to the output of the CCD 26 for each of the R, G, and B signals stored in the buffer memory 30. The gain is set in the white balance adjustment circuit 107. At the time of these settings, the correction of sensitivity variation of the CCD 26 performed on the G signal and the variation correction of sensitivity ratio of the CCD 26 performed on the R and B signals are performed.
[0028]
The white balance adjustment circuit 107 multiplies the R and B signals by the R gain and B gain, which are white balance adjustment coefficients set by the gain circuit 106. In this embodiment, the white balance adjustment value used for correction by the white balance adjustment circuit 107, that is, the R gain and B gain, which are white balance adjustment coefficients, can be set manually.
[0029]
-First embodiment-
Next, photographing processing of the digital still camera 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, exposure adjustment (AE) based on the photometry result of the photometry device 38 (FIG. 3) is performed (step S201), and subsequently focus detection (AF) is performed by the focus detection / adjustment device 36 (step S202). When the AF operation ends, image preprocessing 250 in step S203 is performed.
[0030]
When the image preprocessing 250 in step S203 is completed, the display image creating circuit 31 controlled by the image processing CPU 29 processes the image data for display, and a through screen is displayed on the LCD monitor 3 (step S204). In step S205, it is determined whether or not the half-push switch 22 has been operated. If it is determined that the switch has been operated, a shooting AE operation is performed (step S206), and then a shooting AF operation is performed. (Step S207). When the AF operation in step S207 is completed, the result of both the AE and AF operations is held in the main CPU 21, and it is checked in step S208 whether the full push switch 23 is operated. When it is determined that the full push switch 23 is operated, blackout display is started in step S209A. This blackout display is to display the entire display screen of the LCD monitor 3 in a predetermined color, for example, black. When the blackout display is started, the photographer is informed that the digital camera 1 is processing the captured image data and is not ready to capture the next frame.
[0031]
When the blackout display is started in step S209A, the photographing process lamp 18 indicating that the photographing process is being performed is blinked and displayed in step S210. In step S211, image preprocessing 250 is performed. This image preprocessing 250 is the same as the image preprocessing 250 performed in step S203. When the image preprocessing 250 in step S211 is completed, the image data subjected to the image preprocessing is sent to the compression circuit 32 (FIG. 3), and image postprocessing is performed to compress the data to a predetermined ratio by the JPEG method ( Step S212).
[0032]
When the compression processing of the image data in step S212 is completed, a new work area is secured in the buffer memory 30 by reducing the area occupied by the image data in the buffer memory 30. Therefore, the blackout display displayed on the LCD monitor 3 is terminated in step S213A and the live view display is started. When the blackout display ends, the photographer can recognize that the digital camera 1 has finished processing the captured image data and is ready to capture the next frame. When the blackout display on the LCD monitor 3 is finished, the compressed image data is given a predetermined image data name by the main CPU 21 and recorded on the recording medium 34 (step S214). When the recording process to the recording medium 34 is finished, the blinking display of the photographing process lamp 18 is finished (step S215), and the photographing process of FIG. 5 is finished.
[0033]
On the other hand, if it is determined in step S208 that the full press switch 23 has not been operated, it is checked in step S216 whether the time is up. If it is determined in step S216 that the time is not up, the results of both the AE and AF operations are held in the main CPU 21, and the process returns to step S208 to wait for the full-press switch to be operated. If it is determined in step S216 that the time is up, the shooting process in FIG. 5 is terminated.
[0034]
Next, the image preprocessing 250 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In step S251, charges corresponding to the brightness of the subject image are accumulated in the CCD 26 (FIG. 3), and the charges accumulated in step S252 are sequentially discharged and input to the analog signal processing circuit 27. The analog signal processing circuit 27 performs analog signal processing (step S253), and the A / D conversion circuit 28 converts the analog signal into a digital signal (step S254). The digitized image signal is temporarily stored in the buffer memory 30 when contour compensation or gamma correction is performed in the image processing CPU 29, and thereafter image processing such as white balance adjustment is performed (step S255). Exit.
[0035]
As described above, according to the first embodiment, the following operational effects can be obtained.
(1) The LCD monitor indicates that the captured image data has been subjected to compression processing by the compression circuit 32, and the next frame can be captured because the occupied area occupied by the image data in the buffer memory 30 is reduced. The photographer is clearly informed by displaying a through image on 3. As a result, it is possible to prevent the photographer from pressing the release button to take a picture before the next frame can be taken.
(2) When the full-press switch 23 is operated, blackout display is started on the LCD monitor 3, and the blackout display is continued until the compression circuit 32 finishes the image data compression processing. As a result, since the subject image is temporarily not displayed on the LCD monitor 3 by performing blackout display, the subject image in the finder is temporarily invisible when the reflection mirror is flipped up when shooting with a single-lens reflex camera. The operational feeling can be obtained. In a camera equipped with an optical viewfinder, blackout display may be performed by blocking the optical system of the viewfinder with an LCD or the like.
(3) During the blackout display, the thinning process for displaying the image data for display is displayed on the image data captured after the full-press switch 23 is operated and pre-processed by the image processing CPU 29. Since it is not performed in the image creation circuit 31, there is an effect that the processing time from the end of the compression processing until the next frame shooting becomes possible is shortened.
[0036]
-Second embodiment-
Next, the photographing process of the digital still camera 1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Since the difference from the flowchart according to the first embodiment of FIG. 5 is step S209B and step S213B, both steps will be described. When it is determined in step S208 that the full push switch 23 is operated, the through screen display is fixed in step S209B. This through screen display fixing is performed by the display image creating circuit 31 in the display process of step S204, and the display image data displayed on the LCD monitor 3 is stored in the display image creating circuit 31 or the buffer memory 30. This is done by holding. The through-screen display processed in step S204 is fixed, that is, continuously displayed, thereby informing the photographer that the digital camera 1 is processing the captured image data and is not ready to capture the next frame. .
[0037]
In step S213B, the fixing of the display image data displayed on the LCD monitor 3 is finished, and the through image display of the current subject image is started. When the continuous display of the through screen displayed on the LCD monitor 3 is terminated and the through image display updated at predetermined time intervals is started, the photographer can process the captured image data by the digital camera 1. When finished, it can be recognized that the next frame is ready for shooting.
[0038]
As described above, according to the second embodiment, the following functions and effects can be obtained in addition to the functions and effects of the first embodiment.
(1) The through image immediately before photographing that was displayed on the LCD monitor 3 when the full-press switch 23 was operated is continued until the compression processing of the image data is completed by the compression circuit 32 after the full-press switch 23 is operated. To be displayed. As a result, the subject image on the LCD monitor 3 is prevented from being temporarily displayed, and the photographer can always see the subject image on the LCD monitor 3.
[0039]
In the above description, when the fixation of the through image data immediately before photographing that has been displayed on the LCD monitor 3 in step S213B is completed, the through image display of the current subject image is performed. Instead of displaying the through image, for example, the characters “next frame shooting is possible” are displayed, a predetermined image different from the subject image is displayed, or a predetermined color is displayed instead of the image display. You may make it perform.
[0040]
-Third embodiment-
Next, photographing processing of the digital still camera 1 according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Since the difference from the flowchart according to the first embodiment in FIG. 5 is step S209C, step S211A, and step S213C, the difference will be described. When it is determined in step S208 that the full push switch 23 is operated, a buzzer sound is started in step S209C. The start of the buzzer sound is performed by the main CPU 21 sending a buzzer sound generation command to the buzzer 19. A buzzer sound generated by the buzzer 19 in response to a command output from the main CPU 21 notifies the photographer that the digital camera 1 is processing the captured image data and is not ready to capture the next frame.
[0041]
In step S211A, the image data processed in step S211 is displayed on the LCD monitor 3 as a freeze image. In step S213C, the generation of the buzzer sound generated by the buzzer 19 is terminated, and the through image display on the LCD monitor 3 is started. When the generation of the buzzer sound is terminated, the photographer can recognize that the digital camera 1 has finished processing the captured image data and is ready to capture the next frame.
[0042]
In the above description, the case where an image is displayed on the LCD monitor 3 has been described. However, the display of the LCD monitor 3 is set to OFF in a digital camera that can set ON / OFF of the display of the LCD monitor 3. Alternatively, this embodiment can also be applied to a digital camera not provided with the LCD monitor 3. Further, when the generation of the buzzer sound by the buzzer 19 is finished in step S213C, the blinking display by the photographing processing lamp 18 is also finished, so that even when the subject image is not displayed on the LCD monitor 3. The photographer can recognize from the lamp 18 that the next frame can be shot.
[0043]
As described above, according to the third embodiment, the following operational effects can be obtained.
(1) A buzzer sound is generated from the buzzer 19 when the full-press switch 23 is operated, and the buzzer sound is continued until the compression processing of the image data is completed by the compression circuit 32. As a result, when the drawing speed of the LCD monitor 3 is slow, when the digital still camera 1 informs the photographer that the next frame shooting is possible, the through image display on the LCD monitor 3 starts when notifying by the buzzer sound. The effect that it can alert | report faster than it alert | reports by this is produced.
[0044]
In the third embodiment described above, the buzzer 19 starts to sound in step S209C and the buzzer 19 stops sounding in step S213C. However, in step S209C, for example, the buzzer 19 continues to sound for 0.1 seconds, and in step S213C, for example, The sound may continue to sound for 0.1 second. Further, in step S209C and step S213C, the frequency of the buzzer sound generated from the buzzer 19 may be changed.
[0045]
In the above description, the first to third embodiments are implemented independently, but the third embodiment is different from the first embodiment or the second embodiment. You may implement so that the buzzer sound by this form may be generated simultaneously.
[0046]
In the present embodiment, the description has been given using the digital camera that can shoot the next frame when the compression processing of the image data ends. However, the timing at which the next frame can be shot differs depending on the internal circuitry and software of the digital camera. For example, when a large-capacity buffer memory is used, the next frame can be shot without performing compression processing. The digital camera according to the present invention does not matter at what timing the next frame can be captured as long as the camera can notify the shootable state of the next frame.
[0048]
【The invention's effect】
In the digital camera according to the present invention , it is possible to clearly indicate the timing at which the next frame shooting can be performed before the data after image processing is recorded on the recording medium.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIGS. 1A and 1B are views showing an external appearance of a digital still camera according to an embodiment when the digital still camera is housed and carried, and FIG. 1B is a view seen from above, and FIG.
2 is a diagram showing an external appearance of the camera of FIG. 1 during normal shooting, where (a) is a view from the front, (b) is a view from above, and (c) is a view from behind. It is.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a circuit block of a digital still camera according to an embodiment.
4 is a block diagram illustrating a circuit that performs line processing in the signal processing system illustrated in FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a flowchart for describing a photographing process according to the first embodiment.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating image preprocessing.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart for describing photographing processing according to the second embodiment.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart for describing photographing processing according to the third embodiment.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Digital still camera, 2 ... Shooting zoom lens, 3 ... LCD monitor, 4 ... Flash device, 8 ... Main switch, 9 ... Release button, 11 ... Flash shooting mode button, 14 ... Zoom change button, 16 ... Menu button, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 17 ... Selection dial, 18 ... Shooting process display lamp, 19 ... Buzzer, 21 ... Main CPU, 22 ... Half press switch, 23 ... Full press switch, 26 ... CCD, 29 ... Image processing CPU, 31 ... Display image creation circuit, 32 ... Compression circuit, 34 ... Recording medium, 35 ... Real time clock, 36 ... Focus detection / adjustment device, 37 ... Zoom lens driving device, 38 ... Photometry device, 41 ... Switch control CPU

Claims (5)

In a digital camera that captures a subject image with an imaging element through a photographic lens, performs predetermined image processing on the image data of the captured subject image, and records it on a recording medium.
A next-frame shooting enable detection means for detecting that next-frame shooting is possible before recording the image-processed data on the recording medium ;
A digital camera comprising: notifying means for notifying that the next-frame shooting capability detecting means detects that the next-frame shooting is possible. The digital camera according to claim 1, wherein
It further comprises a shooting start detection means for detecting that a shooting start instruction has been made,
The notification means includes
Display means for displaying the subject image converted into the image data;
When the shooting start instruction is detected by the shooting start detection means, the display of the subject image picked up by the image sensor is stopped on the display means, and the next frame shooting is possible. A digital camera comprising: display control means for displaying, on the display means, a subject image picked up by the image pickup device when detected by the frame-capturing detection means. The digital camera according to claim 1, wherein
It further comprises a shooting start detection means for detecting that a shooting start instruction has been made,
The notification means includes
Display means for displaying the subject image converted into the image data;
Until said imaging start instruction is able to: frame photographed by said display means before Symbol next frame shooting detectable means an object image is displayed in when detected by said photographing start detection means is detected Display control means for displaying a subject image picked up by the image sensor on the display means when the next-frame shooting enable detection means detects that the next-frame shooting is possible. A digital camera characterized by including: The digital camera according to claim 2 or claim 3 ,
Transfer end detection means for detecting that transfer of the image data after the image processing to the recording medium is completed;
A second informing means for informing until the end of transfer to the recording medium is detected by the transfer end detecting means after the photographing start instruction is detected by the photographing start detecting means; digital camera, characterized in that it comprises. The digital camera according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A memory for temporarily storing data before and after the image processing;
The next-frame shooting possibility detecting means detects that the next-frame shooting is possible when a storage area for shooting data of the next frame is secured in the memory .

Images