To miniaturize a shutter mechanism to protect a photographic lens, to avoid the shutter mechanism from breaking and to obtain the high precision shutter mechanism by a simple and easy assembly in an ultra-small micro MV video camera.

In the image pickup apparatus equipped with the openable and closable shutter mechanism to protect the photographic lens of an ultra-small and light-weight video camera, the shutter mechanism is composed of a drive mechanism 34 having an output shaft rotated and outputting by a motor 36 via a deceleration mechanism, a cam plate 24 engaged with the output shaft of the mechanism 34 to be turned via a shaft mechanism coaxial with the output shaft, a shutter plate 23 engaged with the cam groove 27 of the cam plate 24 to slide vertically in the longitudinal direction of the video camera body portion and move to open and close the front surface of the photographic lens, and a clutch mechanism provided in the mechanism 34 to isolate a drive transmission system of the output shaft and the motor 36, when an external force stronger than the predetermined external force is applied to the shutter plate 23 which is being opened and closed.