Patent ID: 7333144

Claim:
An electronic flash device which is used in a camera for performing photographing by an image pickup operation performed by a charge coupled device having an electronic shutter, an overflow drain and a light-receiving device, and which irradiates auxiliary light on an object if necessary in photographing by the camera, the camera having a timing generator for generating timing signals, comprising: a light-emitting unit for emitting light to be irradiated on an object; and an emission control unit for controlling the light-emitting unit such that preliminary emission for red-eye reduction for constricting pupils of a person is performed in a period of operation of the electronic shutter, wherein the timing generator generates a charge transfer signal, an overflow drain signal and a vertical sync signal, the charge transfer signal and the overflow drain signal are generated by the timing generator in synchronization with the vertical sync signal, the emission control unit controls the light-emitting unit in synchronization with the charge transfer signal, and the overflow drain signal, the change transfer signal is used for transferring signal charges from the light-receiving device to a vertical transfer path, and the overflow drain signal controls draining of excess charges by the overflow drain.