An image processing apparatus includes: a contrast area detector detecting a partial area from among partial areas in an input image signal as a contrast area, the input image signal being formed by a plurality of pixels, the contrast area being a partial area in which contrast of an input luminance indicative of a luminance of the input image signal is greater than a predetermined value; a luminance distributor distributing the input luminance in the contrast area into a bright-side luminance corresponding to a bright side of the input luminance and a dark-side luminance corresponding to a dark side of the input luminance; and a boundary luminance value generator generating a boundary luminance value between the bright-side luminance and the dark-side luminance on the basis of the distributions of the bright-side luminance and the dark-side luminance.