Patent ID: 7777796

Claim:
A solid-state image pickup apparatus, comprising: a pixel unit including a plurality of pixels; a pixel control unit for controlling the plurality of pixels; a readout unit for reading a signal of each pixel output from the pixel unit; a shutter unit for establishing a state of a light incident to the pixel unit and that of shielding the pixel unit from the light; and a control unit, comprising an exposure mode changeover unit for changing over an exposure mode to either a first exposure mode performing a simultaneous exposure for all pixels or a second exposure mode performing an exposure for each of a predetermined unit of pixels, for controlling the pixel control unit, readout unit and shutter unit according to an exposure mode changed over by the exposure mode changeover unit, wherein the pixel unit is one in which each pixel comprises a photoelectric conversion element, an amplification-use element, a transfer-use element for transferring a photoelectric charge from the photoelectric conversion element to an input part of the amplification-use element, and a reset-use element for resetting the input part of the amplification-use element, and the control unit controls the pixel control unit, readout unit and shutter unit so as to have the shutter unit establish a state of shielding the pixel unit from a light and resets the photoelectric conversion element by controlling the reset-use element and transfer-use element for each pixel of the plurality of pixels, followed by having the shutter unit establish a state of a light incident to the pixel unit and performs a simultaneous exposure at the plurality of pixels, followed by having the shutter unit establish a state of shielding the pixel from a light and reading out a first signal output by way of the amplification-use element by controlling the reset-use element, followed by reading out a second signal output by way of the amplification-use element by controlling the transfer-use element and followed by subtracting the first signal from the second signal for each pixel of the plurality of pixels in the case of being changed over to a first exposure mode by the exposure mode changeover unit.