PURPOSE: To omit a specific time expander even in an E-E mode by using plural charge coupling elements as time axis compressing elements and providing a switching means for selectively switching a component chrominance signals obtained before and after the time axis compression to the input stage of said elements.

CONSTITUTION: A switching circuit 35 is constituted of switches S1∼S4 arranged on CCDs 31∼34. When a color difference signal is inputted, the CCDs 31, 32 are turned to the WRITE mode and the input signal is written at a write clock CkW in case of an even line, and at an odd line, the signal is read out at a reading clock CKR having twice the frequency of CKW. In this case, the CKR is supplied only to the CCD 31 during the first half of the even line and the CKR is supplied only to the CCD 32 during the latter half. A pair of color difference signals are compressed at their time axes with time division. When the CCDs 31, 32 are in the reading mode, the CCDs 33, 34 are in the writing mode. At a reproducing time, the circuit 35 is turned to the terminal (b) side, and in the even line, the compressed color difference signals are written in the CCDs 31, 32. Therefore, the CKR for recording is used as the writing clock. The CKW for reading is used for the reading clock.