Image processing apparatus

An image processing apparatus for interpolating, for an image signal which is made up of many pixels arranged on a two-dimensional plane and has a pixel value corresponding to any one of a plurality of color signals for each pixel, a pixel value at an arbitrary interpolation point arranged on the two-dimensional plane by pixel values of peripheral pixels, and generating an image signal having pixel values of all the color signals for each interpolation point, comprising:

• an interpolation unit for interpolating a pixel value of each color signal at the interpolation point using pixel values of pixels in the same color falling within a predetermined interpolation region including the interpolation point, and outputting the pixel value as an interpolated pixel value at the interpolation point for each color signal;
• a compensation value calculation unit for generating a pixel compensation value for compensating a pixel value of the interpolation point using pixel values of a plurality of pixels around the interpolation point that fall within a compensation region wider and including the interpolation region;
• and
• a compensation unit for compensating the interpolated pixel value of each color signal at the interpolation point that is output from said interpolation unit by using the pixel compensation value corresponding to the interpolation point that is obtained by said compensation value calculation unit, and outputting the compensated interpolated pixel value as a new pixel value of each color signal at the interpolation point.