Late last night, Canon took the wraps off the Cinema EOS System (five new “4K” EF Cinema Lenses), the EOS C300 digital cinema camera, and hinted at a new DSLR camera capable of shooting at 4K resolution. This represents Canon’s first official foray into the movie industry, though its DSLR cameras and lenses have been incredibly popular amongst film and TV producers in recent years.

The C300 (pictured above) is a squat, square beast that doesn’t exactly embody the classic definition of “beautiful,” but just look at all of those buttons! (There are even more on the other side, too). The C300 isn’t a 4K camera, but it does have an 8-megapixel Super 35 (full-frame 35mm) CMOS sensor capable of capturing 1080p at up to 60 frames per second. It sounds like the new sensor (simultaneously?) captures three, full-HD R, G, and B video signals, too, which should improve image quality and color accuracy. The C300 costs $20,000.

As for the 4K-capable DSLR, Canon hasn’t released many details. It sounds like it could be a new camera between the recently-announced 1D X and the 5D Mk II — or it could just be the 5D Mk III. Basically it sounds like Canon knows that its 1080p-shooting DSLRs have significant competition from RED’s 4K cameras, especially now that the sub-$10,000 RED Scarlet is on its way. We don’t know when this 4K camera will arrive, but it will hopefully be within a few months, and priced around the $5,000 mark.

Finally, the lenses — o’ the lenses! Of the five lenses, two are zooms (14.5-60mm and 30-300mm) that come in either EF or PL format, PL being a 35mm film camera mount. This means that the zoom lenses will work perfectly across every Canon EOS camera (including the cropped APS-C and APS-H DSLRs), the C300, the 1D and 5D, and a bunch of film cameras. The three remaining lenses are gorgeous primes — 24mm T1.5, 50mm T1.3, and 85mm T1.3. All five lenses are apparently “4K” quality, which presumably means they are higher quality glass than Canon’s usual fare.

The primes, incidentally, at $6,800, would make the perfect Christmas gift for a budding photographer in your family. The zooms, however, at $47,000, might be a little dear.

Read more at the new Canon Cinema EOS website, or these press releases: C300, Cinema EOS lenses, new DSLR