Patent ID: 8284268

Claim:
An apparatus, comprising: a controller configured to conduct an area zoom control such that, when a given area is specified as a sub-area of a display region displaying a first image acquired by an imaging unit at a current acquisition magnification and a current acquisition angle, the imaging unit acquires a second image of the given area at a modified acquisition magnification and a modified acquisition angle, and determine the modified acquisition magnification, at least in part, by comparing a ratio to a limiting magnification, the ratio being of dimensions of the display region with respect to dimensions of the given area, the limiting magnification being based, at least in part, on an amount by which a center of the given area would be displaced from a center of the display region if the limiting magnification were applied, wherein the modified acquisition magnification is obtained as a result of multiplying the current acquisition magnification by a relative zoom magnification, and the controller is configured such that when the ratio is larger than the limiting magnification, the limiting magnification is adopted as the relative zoom magnification, and when the ratio is smaller than the limiting magnification, the ratio is adopted as the relative zoom magnification.