CONTRAST CORRECTING APPARATUS

An apparatus for correcting contrast of a selected range without changing lightness and color tone of a pixel designated as a central object of processing. The apparatus includes a frame memory for storing original image signals; a conversion table for converting the original image signals to CIE-Lab values; a data input device for designating a color to be corrected and to act as the central object of processing, a distance in CIE-Lab perceived color space indicating an effective range of processing, and a characteristic parameter for the processing; a lookup table for contrast correction; a lookup table initializer for matching input/output relations of the color to be corrected, and initializing the lookup table for other input/output relations based on the characteristic parameter; a mixing ratio computing unit for determining whether or not pixels in an original image are within the effective range, and computing a mixing ratio; and a mixing processor for mixing the original image signals and output data of the lookup table at the mixing ratio. The invention also includes an apparatus in which an effective range of contrast correction is designated with hue, saturation and lightness which are the three attributes of perceived color.