Patent ID: 7852398
Filing Date: 2010-12-14
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. An image-taking apparatus comprising: an image-pickup element configured to photoelectrically convert an object image formed by an image-taking optical system including a focus lens; a first detector configured to detect information for searching for an in-focus position of the focus lens in accordance with a focus evaluation value signal, the focus evaluation value signal representing a focusing state of the image-taking optical system and being based on a predetermined frequency component of an output signal of the image-pickup element; a second detector configured to detect information on an in-focus position of the focus lens in accordance with a detection signal, wherein the detection signal corresponds to a relative positional displacement amount of split object images; and a controller configured to perform a first control of driving the focus lens and a second control of driving the focus lens, the second control being performed by the controller when matching (a) a direction of the in-focus position obtained according to the information detected by the second detector and (b) a direction of the in-focus position obtained by the first detector during the first control, wherein, in the first control, the controller controls the focus lens in accordance with the focus evaluation value signal by regarding the in-focus position as being in a direction in which the contrast of the object image increases, and wherein, in the second control, the controller controls the focus lens in accordance with the information detected by the second detector.