The monitor recording device (10) can allow an operator to identify an object with ease by comprising a frame control unit (11) for receiving a video signal of a monitor area at a specific frame rate such as for example one frame per second. A compression/expansion unit (12) compresses video data indicative of the video signal. A moving object area detecting unit (15) receives an image of a monitor area at sixty frames per second, dividing the image into a plurality of sections, and detecting one or more sections including an image of a person going in and out of the monitor area. A person extracting unit (16) extracts an image of his/her face from the sections. An optimum image judging unit (17) determines an optimum image of his/her face. A picture-in-picture synthesizing unit (20) synthesizes the optimum image and the video data.