Patent ID: 7349011

Claim:
An image pickup control apparatus for controlling an image pickup apparatus via a data communications interface unit, the image pickup control apparatus comprising: a connection detecting unit which detects a connection to the image pickup apparatus via the data communications interface unit; a storage unit which stores a plurality of kinds of control data for controlling the image pickup apparatus in accordance with a plurality of photographing conditions, the names of the photographing conditions, example photographed images, different from images photographed by the user using the image pickup apparatus and representing different kinds of scenes a user of the image pickup apparatus will use the image pickup apparatus to photograph that are associated with particular photographing conditions associated with particular values for the control data and that are to be displayed before performing photographing of a specific scene with the image pickup apparatus, and description information for explaining a scene to be photographed in each of the plurality of photographing conditions, that is different from the control data associated with each of the photographing conditions; a setting unit which displays the plurality of photographing conditions, which, prior to photographing by the image pickup apparatus, selects a desired photographing condition from among the plurality of displayed photographing conditions to display the plurality of kinds of control data associated with the selected photographing condition, the name of the selected photographing condition, the example photographed image associated with the selected photographing condition, which is different from an image photographed by the user using the image pickup apparatus and which represents the kind of scene a user of the image pickup apparatus will use the image pickup apparatus to photograph after the example photographed image is displayed, and the description information for explaining the scene to be photographed in the selected photographing condition, that is different from the control data associated with the selected photographing condition, and changes the plurality of kinds of control data corresponding to the selected photographing condition; and a control unit which is communicatively coupled to said connection detecting unit and said setting unit, wherein in a case that said connection detection unit detects the connection to the image pickup apparatus, said control unit effects control so as to transmit to the image pickup apparatus the plurality of kinds of control data changed by said setting unit.