Patent ID: 8477384

Claim:
A solid-state image pickup device comprising: a pixel array in which light-receiving pixel elements and light-blocking pixel elements are disposed such that reading lines include the light-blocking pixel elements individually; analog-to-digital converters disposed for columns of the pixel array individually; a readout circuit block for reading pixel signals of each of the reading lines from the pixel array, inputting the pixel signals to the analog-to-digital converters, and outputting the pixel signals of the light-blocking pixel elements; and a ramp signal generation circuit for obtaining an average value of the pixel signals of the light-blocking pixel elements output from the readout circuit block, adjusting a reference level of analog-to-digital conversion for each of the reading lines, in accordance with the average value of the pixel signals of the light-blocking pixel elements included in each of the reading lines, generating a ramp signal which increases at a constant rate from the reference level, and inputting the ramp signal to the analog-to-digital converters.