Still-video camera with function setting operation

A still-video camera, comprising:

• a camera body;
• a photographing lens system that forms an image of an object to be photographed at a predetermined position;
• a device that selects one of an optical photographing function setting or a normal photography setting;
• an illumination unit having a plurality of light sources which emit light beams when said optical photographing function setting is selected, the illumination unit illuminating a data symbol, which corresponds to the object, with said light beams;
• an image receiving unit, located at said predetermined position, for generating an image signal corresponding to said image of said object, said image receiving unit and said illumination unit being housed in said camera body, an amount of an overlap of a plurality of beam spots formed by the plurality of light beams on a plane perpendicular to an optical axis of said image receiving unit varying in accordance with a distance between the photographing lens system and the plane;
• a system that decodes information of the data symbol based on an image signal generated by said image receiving unit when said optical photographing function setting is selected and when said data symbol is photographed through said photographing lens system, said data symbol having a pattern corresponding to photographing information;
• and
• a system that controls said photographing lens system, in response to selection of said optical photographing function setting by said device, to focus the photographing lens system on the plane where the plurality of beam spots substantially completely overlap each other,
• wherein a front surface of the photographing lens system and front surfaces of the light sources are positioned substantially flush with a front surface of the camera body.

A still-video camera, comprising:

• a camera body
• an illumination unit having a pair of light sources which emit light beams that intersect;
• a photographing lens system that forms an image of an object to be photographed at a predetermined position;
• an image receiving unit, located at said predetermined position, for generating an image signal corresponding to said image of said object, said image receiving unit and said illumination unit being housed in said camera body, said illumination unit illuminating said data symbol with said light beams, a shape of a beam spot of said light beams on a plane perpendicular to an optical axis of said image receiving unit varying in accordance with a position of said plane;
• a device that selects one of an optical photographing function setting or a normal photography setting;
• a system that decodes information of a data symbol based on an image signal generated by said image receiving unit when said optical photographing function setting is selected and when said data symbol, corresponding to said object, is photographed through said photographing lens system, said data symbol having a pattern corresponding to photographing information;
• a first memory for storing information decoded by said decoding system;
• a second memory for storing index data corresponding to a photography mode of said still-video camera;
• a system that determines whether said decoded information stored in said first memory coincides with said index data stored in said second memory;
• and
• a system that sets a photography mode corresponding to said decoded information when said decoded information coincides with said index data.