An image pickup apparatus includes a light source section that can radiate light of the same wavelength onto the same region of a subject twice within a one-frame period making up one image, a brightness detection section that detects brightness of two returning light images when light has been radiated twice, and a synthetic image generation section that generates a synthetic image obtained by synthesizing the two returning light images using the light of the same wavelength and under the same exposure quantity based on the detection result of the brightness.