Patent ID: 8537442

Claim:
An image reading apparatus comprising: a light source that generates light by synthesizing light from different illuminants each emitting a different colored light, and that irradiates an irradiated object with the generated light; a color sample formed of a color of light emitted by one of the different illuminants; a reading unit that reads light irradiated by the light source and reflected by the irradiated object to generate image information about the irradiated object in a first color space, wherein the reading unit also reads light irradiated by the light source and reflected by the color sample to generate image information about the color sample in the first color space; a color conversion unit that converts the image information about the irradiated object in the first color space generated by the reading unit into image information in a second color space using a color conversion factor group selected in advance; and a color conversion factor group selecting unit that selects the color conversion factor group in advance of the color conversion unit converting the image information about the irradiated object by acquiring from the reading unit the image information about the color sample and selecting the color conversion factor group to be used by the color conversion unit, from among a plurality of color conversion factor groups, according to the acquired image information about the color sample.