Patent ID: 8823866

Claim:
An image pickup apparatus comprising: an image sensing unit that generates an image signal by performing a photoelectric conversion on an object image; a focus evaluation value calculation unit that calculates a focus evaluation value indicating a contrast of the image signal; a control unit that controls a position of a focus lens based on the focus evaluation value; a focus level calculation unit that calculates a focus level indicating a degree of focus using the focus evaluation value; and a detection unit that detects an exposure condition in taking an image of an object; wherein the exposure condition includes a signal gain of the image signal, and wherein the control unit determines a driving condition of the focus lens such that in a case where the signal gain is equal to a first value, the driving condition is determined based on a focus level calculated using a peak value of high-frequency component of the image signal, while in a case where the signal gain corresponds to a second value greater than the first value, the driving condition is determined based on a focus level calculated using a value determined by integrating a peak value of a high-frequency component of the image signal in each line over a plurality of lines.