PURPOSE: To generate retrieval use recording pattern data by classifying data for each specific group.

CONSTITUTION: The digital still camera digitizing picture data of an object picked up and recording the digitized data onto a recording medium 102 in the unit of frames is provided with a classification means 103 classifying picture data of the picked-up object to a specific group in the unit of frames and a recording control means 104 reducing and recording the picture data of the plural frames of the specific group classified by the classification means 103 to a recording area allocated in the unit of frames.