An image processing apparatus and method converts a moving image signal into an image data format consisting of a luminance signal and a color-difference signal like that of the YUV format at a signal processing circuit 4, compression-encodes the image data at a compression circuit 10 and records it on a recording medium 11, in addition to reducing the same-format image data color-difference signal to generate image data for display, enabling the image processing apparatus for recording a moving image to achieve moving image recording of a quality that is good enough to be used as still images.