A system and method for synchronizing a photographic lighting device to image acquisition by a camera using light emission profile information to position a light emission profile at a desired location in an image acquisition window. A light energy balance point of a light emission profile can be used to position the balance point at a desired location in an image acquisition window.

An aperture device actuated by a shape memory alloy wire controls two overlapping shuttering surfaces. The two shuttering surfaces control the amount of light transmitted through a lens assembly. The shape memory alloy wire is actuated by a flexible printed circuit which controls a lever slotted to both shuttering surfaces. By Joule heating, the electric current controls the shape of the wire, actuating the aperture device.

A focal-plane shutter for electronic front curtain scanning allows blades to move in two directions across the opening in a balanced manner, rather than in one direction. The focal-plane shutter for electronic front curtain scanning includes a base plate having an opening, a first blade movable in a first direction to close the opening, a second blade movable in a second direction to close the opening and opposite to the first direction in which the first blade is movable, a first urging member that urges the first blade in the first direction to close the opening, and a second urging member that urges the second blade in the second direction to close the opening.

A focal-plane shutter for electronic front curtain scanning allows blades to move in two directions across the opening in a balanced manner, rather than in one direction. The focal-plane shutter for electronic front curtain scanning includes a base plate having an opening, a first blade movable in a first direction to close the opening, a second blade movable in a second direction to close the opening and opposite to the first direction in which the first blade is movable, a first urging member that urges the first blade in the first direction to close the opening, and a second urging member that urges the second blade in the second direction to close the opening.

An image pickup apparatus which satisfactorily compensates for a flash band appearing due to an external flash and prevents a row insensitive to the flash from appearing in a corrected image. The flash band appearing in a plurality of frames consecutive in terms of time is detected based on an image signal output from an image pickup device which sequentially starts exposure and sequentially reads out signals for each row of pixels. An image in at least one of those frames is corrected to a full-screen flash image. When a width of the flash band is smaller than the number of rows in one frame, a row in which the flash band does not appear is interpolated using a row in which the flash band appears and which immediately precedes or immediately succeeds the row in which the flash band does not appear.

An image pickup apparatus which satisfactorily compensates for a flash band appearing due to an external flash and prevents a row insensitive to the flash from appearing in a corrected image. The flash band appearing in a plurality of frames consecutive in terms of time is detected based on an image signal output from an image pickup device which sequentially starts exposure and sequentially reads out signals for each row of pixels. An image in at least one of those frames is corrected to a full-screen flash image. When a width of the flash band is smaller than the number of rows in one frame, a row in which the flash band does not appear is interpolated using a row in which the flash band appears and which immediately precedes or immediately succeeds the row in which the flash band does not appear.

An imaging blade driving device includes a lens frame holding lenses, and a blade driver mounted on the lens frame including a front frame holding a front lens, a rear frame holding a rear lens and including a step with a larger diameter than the front frame, a pair of slits in a side surface of the front frame along the step, and a connector connecting the front and rear frames outside the slits. The blade driver includes a frame body, and an insert protruding from the frame body and placeable into the slits. The insert has an aperture aligned with an optical axis of the lenses and accommodating a blade. The frame body has a contact surface in contact with a surface of the rear frame perpendicular to an optical axis direction.

A shutter apparatus includes a front blade unit and a rear blade unit configured to open and close an opening for exposure control, a front drive member and a rear drive member configured to drive the front blade unit and the rear blade unit between an open position and a closed position of the opening, respectively, a front cam gear and a rear cam gear configured to charge the front drive member and the rear drive member, respectively, a front driving source and a rear driving source connected to and configured to rotate the front cam gear and the rear cam gear, respectively, and a controller configured to control the front driving source and the rear driving source based on an imaging condition so as to change driving times of the front blade unit and the rear blade unit.

A shutter apparatus includes a front blade unit and a rear blade unit configured to open and close an opening for exposure control, a front drive member and a rear drive member configured to drive the front blade unit and the rear blade unit between an open position and a closed position of the opening, respectively, a front cam gear and a rear cam gear configured to charge the front drive member and the rear drive member, respectively, a front driving source and a rear driving source connected to and configured to rotate the front cam gear and the rear cam gear, respectively, and a controller configured to control the front driving source and the rear driving source based on an imaging condition so as to change driving times of the front blade unit and the rear blade unit.

To decrease the influence of a magnetic flux generated in one magnetic drive unit on the other magnetic drive unit while securing downsizing. Provided are a first magnetic drive unit including a first coil to which a drive current is supplied and a first magnet rotated with electric conduction to the first coil, a second magnetic drive unit including a second coil to which a drive current is supplied and a second magnet rotated with electric conduction to the second coil, a first drive lever operated by the first magnetic drive unit, a second drive lever operated by the second magnetic drive unit, a first opening and closing blade that opens and closes an opening by an operation of the first drive lever, a second opening and closing blade that opens and closes the opening by an operation of the second drive lever, a first lock mechanism that locks the first drive lever at a predetermined position, and a second lock mechanism that locks the second drive lever at a predetermined position, in which at least a part of the first lock mechanism and at least a part of the second lock mechanism are located between the first magnetic drive unit and the second magnetic drive unit.