Patent ID: 7327886
Filing Date: 2008-02-05
Classification: G06K,G06T,H04N

Abstract:
1. A photographing apparatus comprising: a photographing means for obtaining image data by taking a photograph of a subject; a display means for displaying various kinds of information including the image data; a release means for performing photographing operation; a storage means for storing various kinds of information including the image data; a photographing control means for obtaining a moving image of the subject by continuously taking photographs with the photographing means and displaying the moving image on the display means; a face judgment means for performing processing, in a predetermined time interval, for judging whether a human face is included in a frame included in the moving image until a positive result is obtained in the judgment; a face detection means for detecting a facial position in a frame, which is judged to include a face, if the face judgment means judges that the face is included in the frame; and a control means for controlling the photographing means, the face judgment means, the face detection means, and the storage means so that the detected facial position is stored in the storage means, judgment is made as to whether the face is included in the next frame after the predetermined time, and if the judgment is positive, the facial position is detected, the facial position, which is stored in the storage means, is replaced by the newly detected facial position and the newly detected facial position is stored in the storage means, and until the release means performs the photographing operation, judgment is made as to whether the face is included in the next frame further after the predetermined time, and if it is judged that the face is included in the frame, the facial position is detected, and the newly detected facial position is stored in the storage means, and a frame obtained when the release means performs the photographing operation and/or a plurality of temporally precedent and/or subsequent frames of the obtained frame are stored in the storage means as the image data.