Patent ID: 7599960

Claim:
A metadata adding method for adding scene metadata to image data as information related to a scene thereof, the scene metadata being indicative of a scene included in an event, the method comprising the steps of: retrieving from a storing portion a table listing scene-metadata candidates to be added to image data, the scene-metadata candidates representing scenes of the event, wherein the scene-metadata candidates are listed in the table in a particular order, and each of the scene-metadata candidates is associated with a required duration of a corresponding scene of the event; designating image data to which scene-metadata of the event is to be added by user operation; searching for image data, which has shooting time information representing a shooting time earlier than the shooting time of the designated image data, and to which scene metadata of the event has already been added; acquiring shooting time information of the designated image data, shooting time information of the searched image data, and the scene metadata added to the searched image data; determining a scene-metadata candidate to be added to the designated image data, by presuming the number of scenes of the event that occur between the scene of the event corresponding to the searched image data and the scene of the event corresponding to designated image data, based on the difference between the shooting time of the designated image data and the shooting time of the searched image data, and on the retrieved table listing scene-metadata candidates of the event; and displaying the determined scene-metadata candidate to be added to the designated image data.