Patent ID: 8116593

Claim:
An image processing apparatus comprising: display means for displaying a zoom image resulting from enlargement of a certain area in an original image to a zoom area; important object determining means for determining whether an absolute value of a difference in pixel value between each of a plurality of pixels on a boundary line, which is the outermost circumference of the zoom area, and each of pixels that respectively adjoin each of the plurality of pixels on the boundary line in a direction perpendicular to the boundary line and away from the zoom area is lower than or equal to a predetermined threshold value to determine whether an important object is across the boundary line based on a maximum counted value of a number of times the absolute value of the difference is determined to be lower than or equal to the predetermined threshold value over the boundary line; and resetting means for resetting a zoom parameter used for determining the zoom area when the important object determining means determines that an important object is across the boundary line.