1. A method of recognizing a document image including a plurality of areas, comprising the steps of: a) inputting said document image as a digital image; b) specifying a background color of said document image; c) extracting a plurality of pixels located in areas other than a background area from said document image by use of said background color; d) creating a plurality of connected elements by combining said plurality of pixels; and e) classifying said plurality of connected elements into a plurality of fixed types of areas by using at least features of shapes of said plurality of connected elements to obtain an area-separated document image.