BACKGROUND

Field of the Disclosure

The present disclosure relates to an imaging apparatus, a method of controlling the imaging apparatus, and a storage medium.

Description of the Related Art

In recent years, monitoring camera systems utilizing networks have become widespread.

The monitoring camera systems are used in a wide range of fields including large-scale public institutions and small stores, and there are various types of methods of operating the systems. In particular, a monitoring camera utilizing a network is called a network camera. There are network cameras having various functional characteristics to match operation forms. Examples of such cameras include a network camera that can freely change an image-capturing direction for panning and tilting, and a box-shaped network camera that cannot change the image-capturing direction but can perform high-magnification zooming image-capturing.

As a new use case of such a network camera, there is a case where the network camera is used for image-capturing in a television studio, rather than for monitoring, and the number of such cases has been increasing. In a case where the network camera is used in such a use case, it is necessary that a function of an existing television camera be also included in the network camera.

For example, a standby state is a representative unique function of the existing television camera. The standby state is a state where the television camera is standing by for image-capturing, and the television camera gives a notification to a user by a tally light to notify a producer or a cast member of a television program that the television camera is not capturing an image. In the standby state, imaging is not usually performed either, from the viewpoint of power saving. Accordingly, in order to enable the imaging to start again when cancelling the standby state, it is necessary to make imaging-related settings anew, and thus it takes a long time before a series of image-capturing processes can be performed.

Some techniques have been discussed to achieve both of enabling image-capturing to start immediately when an imaging apparatus returns from a standby state to an image-capturing state, and reducing power consumption in the standby state. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-336117 discusses a related technique. According to this technique, when a standby state is cancelled after an imaging apparatus is shifted to the standby state, an exposure amount for an image sensor is increased to reduce the time taken before an image of an object is focused, so that the time taken before the start of image-capturing is reduced. Meanwhile, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2019-24259 discusses another related technique. According this technique, in an interchangeable-lens imaging apparatus, settings such as focus and aperture settings at the time when a lens is attached are recorded when the lens is detached, and the settings are reflected in the imaging apparatus when the lens is attached again.

However, in the technique discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-336117 described above, although the time taken before the image is focused is reduced by increasing the exposure amount for the image sensor, it is necessary to adjust the focus and aperture settings afterward, which makes it difficult to sufficiently reduce the time taken before the series of image-capturing processes can actually start. Moreover, in the technique discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2019-24259, in a case where an object or environment information such as a lighting environment has changed when the lens is attached again, it is necessary to adjust the focus and aperture settings of the imaging apparatus again. In such a case, it takes a long time before the series of image-capturing processes can start.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure is directed to making it possible to shift an imaging apparatus from a standby state to a state where image-capturing can be immediately performed, and to reduce power consumption.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, an imaging apparatus including an imaging unit that images an object includes a setting unit configured to return the imaging apparatus from a standby state, which is a state before start of a series of image-capturing processes, to a state where the series of image-capturing processes is enabled, a control unit configured to bring the imaging apparatus into a return enabled state where setting of the imaging apparatus is continuously performed depending on an environment of the object, in the standby state, and a shift unit configured to shift the imaging apparatus from the return enabled state to a power saving state where power consumption is reduced as compared with the return enabled state, in the standby state, wherein the shift unit shifts the imaging apparatus to the power saving state, in a case where a predetermined period of time elapses after the imaging apparatus is brought into the return enabled state by the control unit.

Further features of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the attached drawings.

