Patent ID: 7868929

Claim:
A white balance correcting method comprising the steps of: causing a flash emission device to perform pre-emission with a predetermined amount of emission prior to flash photographing and capturing a pre-emitted image picked up in the pre-emission; capturing a non-emitted image picked up in the non-emission prior to the flash photographing; calculating a brightness value given by the amount of emission in the pre-emission to a main subject by comparing the pre-emitted image and the non-emitted image; calculating an amount of flash reached, which indicates a proportion of the brightness value given by the amount of emission in the pre-emission to the main subject, to a target brightness value based on the brightness value given by the calculated amount of emission in the pre-emission to the main subject; calculating an amount of emission in the main emission required for photographing the main subject at the target brightness value based on the captured pre-emitted image and non-emitted image; causing the flash emission device to perform the main emission by the calculated amount of emission in the flash photographing and capturing the main emitted image; calculating a predicted amount of light reached, which indicates a proportion of the brightness value given by the amount of emission in the main emission to the main subject, to a target brightness value by multiplying the calculated amount of flash reached in the pre-emission by a ratio of the calculated amount of emission in the main emission to the amount of emission in the pre-emission; performing white balance correction on the main emitted image obtained in the flash photographing based on the calculated predicted amount of light reached; and wherein the step of performing white balance correction includes: a step of calculating a white balance gain that is obtained by performing weighing-adding on a first white balance gain decided for each color of R, G, B based on the main emitted image obtained in the flash photographing or ambient light around the subject and a second white balance gain preset for each color of R, G, B corresponding to the light source color of the flash according to the calculated predicted amount of light reached; and a step for performing gain correction on R, G, B signals, which represent the main emitted image obtained in the flash photographing based on the calculated white balance gain.