Patent ID: 8730375

Claim:
An imaging apparatus comprising: an imaging section which images a photographic subject; a face detecting section which detects a face anywhere within image data picked up by the imaging section; a judging section which judges whether or not the face has been detected anywhere within the image data by the face detecting section; a face focus controlling section which, when the judging section judges that the face has been detected anywhere within the image data, controls to perform focus processing on the face; a photography scene judging section which, when the judging section judges that the face has not been detected anywhere within the image data, judges a photography scene based on the image data picked up by the imaging section so as to judge how far the imaging apparatus is from the photographic subject; a pan focus determining section which determines a type of pan focus based on the photography scene judged by the photography scene judging section; a pan focus controlling section which, when the judging section judges that the face has not been detected anywhere within the image data, controls to perform pan focus processing corresponding to the type of pan focus determined by the pan focus determining section; a number of faces judging section which judges whether a single face has been detected or multiple faces have been detected anywhere within the image data by the face detecting section; and a face identifying section which identifies a face which serves as a main photographic subject from among the detected multiple faces, when the number of faces judging section judges that the multiple faces have been detected anywhere within the image data; wherein the face focus controlling section controls to perform the focus processing on the detected face when the number of faces judging section judges that the single face has been detected, and controls to perform the focus processing on the main photographic subject when the number of faces judging section judges that the multiple faces have been detected.