Image processing apparatus, image forming apparatus, and image processing method

An image processing apparatus comprising:

• a print processing portion configured to execute, in a print color mode which is either a color mode or a monochrome mode, a print process based on image data of a plurality of pages of document sheets, the print color mode having been set in advance;
• a first determination portion configured to determine, for each page of the document sheets in the image data, whether or not each of a plurality of divided areas is of a color type that is different from the print color mode, the plurality of divided areas having been set in advance;
• a first determination target excluding portion configured to, when the first determination portion determines that one or more divided areas among the plurality of divided areas are of a color type that is different from the print color mode in a first set number or more of pages of the document sheets in the image data, exclude the one or more divided areas from determination targets of the first determination portion thereafter, the first set number having been set in advance;
• and
• a print color mode switching portion configured to be able to switch the print color mode during the print process when the number of divided areas that are the determination targets of the first determination portion becomes a predetermined number or smaller.