This week, Canon came up with a new solution for advanced amateur photographers, amid increasing interest in digital SRL cameras: the 15.1-megapixel EOS 50D Digital SRL Camera and the new DIGIC 4 image processor.

The EOS 50D digital camera offers high quality and image control, and includes an expanded ISO range, as well as improved noise reduction, and in-camera photo editing features. The Creative Auto Mode (CA) offers users more flexibility to easily adjust images without being some kind of experts.

“Advanced amateur photographers blur the line between the hobbyist and the professional,” said Yuichi Ishizuka, senior vice president and general manager of Consumer Imaging Group at Canon U.S.A. Ishizuka added that the EOS 50D is intended to “fuel their passion for photography, and help them achieve their creative potential.”

The EOS 50D camera offers improved image quality, by using an improved CMOS APS-C size image sensor. The DIGIC 4 image processor adds up to the 6.3 frame-per-second (fps) continuous shooting capability, which supports bursts of up to 90 Large/Fine JPEGs or 16 RAW images on a UDMA CF card.

In addition to all that, the camera comes with an Auto Lighting Optimizer to make dark images look brighter, as well as a 3.0-inch Clear View LCD screen with 920,000 dot/VGA resolution, for improved color and quality.

The Canon EOS 50D camera also offers a high-performance viewfinder with 0.95 magnification and high-performance Autofocus (AF), resulting in a better focus of the targets.

The creative Full Auto setting allows users to make adjustments before shooting while still in automatic mode, Canon explained. This way, enthusiastic photographers will be able to improve the shots they are taking, as well as learn to master new techniques.

The EOS 50D camera is compatible with the Canon EF and EF-S lenses. The camera is scheduled to launch this October, and will be sold as a body-only configuration for $1,399.00. The kit version with EF 28-135 mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM zoom lens will cost an estimated $1,599.00.