1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic camera which photographs an object and records image data. In particular, the present invention relates to a technology for recording image data in a good shooting condition without hand shaking or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, when performing hand-held camera shooting, hand shaking often occurs. When this kind of hand shaking occurs, since an object field is exposed in a blurry condition, an entirely blurry image is shot.
In a blurry image like this, the details of the entire image and the edge portions, which should be shot clearly, are lost. Therefore, the image does not give a good impression.
A conventional camera with a hand shaking correction mechanism for solving these disadvantages due to hand shaking is well known.
FIG. 13 shows a camera with this kind of hand shaking correction mechanism.
In FIG. 13, a shooting lens 92 is disposed on the front face of the camera 91. A blur correction optical system 93 is rotatably arranged in the lens barrel of the shooting lens 92.
The rotation of two-axis coreless motors 94 and 95 is transmitted to this blur correction optical system 93, causing it to vibrate vertically and horizontally.
Meanwhile, a blur amount detecting sensor 96 which detects the blur amount in the horizontal direction and a blur amount detecting sensor 97 which detects the blur amount in the vertical direction are arranged in the camera 91.
In the camera 91 which has this kind of structure, vibration of the camera body is detected by using the blur amount detecting sensors 96 and 97. The camera 91 drives the coreless motors 94 and 95 in the reverse direction of the detected vibration, and vibrates the optical axis of the blur correction optical system 93. As a result, the vibration of the shooting optical axis is diminished, and a good photograph in which the hand shaking is corrected can be shot.
However, in this kind of conventional example, the blur correction optical system 93 is disposed in the shooting lens 92. Therefore, there is a problem in that the shooting lens 92 becomes large and heavy.
Moreover, the space to arrange the blur correction optical system 93 has to be kept in the shooting lens 92, and there is a problem in that the flexibility of design of the shooting lens 92 decreases.
Furthermore, the inner reflection in the shooting lens 92 increases for the portion where the blur correction optical system 93 is provided. Therefore, flaring easily occurs when performing back-lit shooting or the like.
Moreover, since electric power is consumed when driving the blur correction optical system 93, there is a problem in that the battery life becomes shorter.
Furthermore, there is a problem in that a small amount of noise occurs when driving the blur correction optical system 93.
On the other hand, a blurred image can occur due not only to the aforementioned hand shaking, but also due to object shifting and misfocusing. However, since the conventional hand shaking correction mechanism only diminishes the vibration of the camera, there is a problem in that the mechanism cannot prevent object shifting and misfocusing at all.
In particular, along with the trend toward higher resolution and miniaturization of imaging elements in recent years, the light receiving area per one pixel is more and more reduced, and the effective sensitivity of the imaging element has become low. Because of this, there is a tendency that the exposure time of the shooting element generally increases, and the chances of occurrence of hand shaking and object shifting become even higher. Because of this, especially in an electronic camera, immediate countermeasures are desired with respect to hand shaking and object shifting.
Moreover, it was very difficult to accurately prevent misfocus accurately with conventional AF (automatic focus) shooting for an object which shows unpredictable movements, such as a flower which is swaying in the wind. Because of this, an electronic camera which can accurately resolve the misfocus accurately under this adverse conditions is strongly desired.