Patent ID: 7667744
Filing Date: 2010-02-23
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. An image pickup apparatus comprising: image input unit which inputs an image; image effect selection unit which selects an arbitrary image effect, the image effect providing image synthesization which changes gradually in accordance with time elapsing; synthesized image generation unit which generates a synthesized image in which the selected image effect is synthesized to the image input by the image input unit; discrimination unit which discriminates whether the image effect selection unit remains selecting the same image effect and being capable of still changing the selected image effect; and controlling unit which, if the discrimination unit discriminates that the image effect selection unit remains selecting the same image effect and being capable of still changing the selected image effect, controls the synthesized image generation unit so as to automatically and repeatedly perform and display the synthesization operation of the same image effect of the input image, at a speed higher than that of a normal synthesization operation, wherein if the selection of the image effect by the image effect selection unit is decided, the controlling unit controls the synthesized image generation unit such that the synthesization operation repeatedly performed at the speed higher than the normal synthesization operation is stopped and the synthesization operation of the same image effect is performed not repeatedly on the image input by the image input unit at a speed of the normal synthesization operation.