Different image sensor sizes - comparison

What is the sensor size of the camera?

If you wonder is is worth to buy full frame sensor for your first camera here is our advices.

What is the best CMOS sensor size for the camera? If you are not a professional photographer and do not have the expertise to answer this question, you shouldn’t be using a Canon DSLR camera. There are many different sensor sizes available, and they are not all interchangeable with each other. For example, there are Canon EOS and Nikon F cameras which both have a 28mm APS-C sensor which is slightly bigger than the Canon EOS 7D with a 28mm APS-C sensor. There is also the Nikon D3300 with a 35mm APS-C sensor and the Canon EOS 6D / 6D Mark II with an APS-C sensor. The biggest difference to the Canon EOS 7D is the APS-C sensor which helps with video image quality and low-light performance for the full frame sensor.

If you are a hobbyist, you should be using a smaller sized sensor. For example, the Canon G9 X Mark II has a 20.3MP APS-C format CMOS sensor which results in a smaller image size than a Canon EOS 7D. It uses a smaller sensor to reduce size. If you are shooting video, you can get around the size issue by using an APS-C lens with a large aperture, or by shooting RAW or RAW+JPG.

I use my camera all the time, does the sensor size matter?

I am not talking about buying expensive camera gear here. The question is do I use the camera all day long and how much does it matter to me? Is it an issue? I am a full time student, and I have had a Canon EOS 7D for almost three years now. That is more than three years of full time photography, plus two of the smaller EOS 7D cameras during that time. Over the last few years I have used my Canon EOS 5D mk2 and 5D mk3 cameras quite a bit so I can say that the size of my images is not a huge issue for me.

Canon EOS 5D mk2 vs 5D mk3

I do shoot primarily video with my camera, so when I do get down to shooting a still photo, I use either Sony’s A7R2 or Nikon’s D7000. These are the two cameras I own, and I use them all the time. The difference between the cameras is pretty much noticable.

In my opinion, there is not much difference between a Canon EOS 5D MK2 and 5D MK3. The differences are slight, and even I would say that shooting with a D7000 is better for video than a 5D MK2.

Do I shoot video with all these cameras?

Of course. I shoot video with every one of my cameras. I have a Canon EOS 70D body on my bed, and I shot with it on the weekend shooting video.

It is important to know that a full frame sensor is a sensor which has a resolution of 4K (3.85-6K). This means that each pixel in the sensor has a size of about 3 to 4 times larger. The larger the sensor size (as opposed to the size of individual pixels) the fewer pixel sizes available per pixel that the sensor can cover.

What size of image sensor should I buy for my first camera?

Most camera sensor manufacturers don’t bother to design for small sensors. There just isn’t a reason not to. Most cameras have an extra inch or two of extra area to accommodate any extra sensor size. So, as a user of cameras that have a very small image sensor, the best solution is to take a small crop of the crop area and crop the rest of the image. Then, use a lens that has a bit of an aperture to get a close-up of the subject and crop the other areas of the image. For example, if I want to shoot an image that has the subject in the centre of the frame, then I can shoot a 35mm lens and then crop out the entire frame to get a smaller image with an aperture of f/2.8.

If you are shooting in a studio setting (not a wedding), it will almost always make more sense to crop out the whole image (including those little bit of light that is not captured by the digital camera sensor) to the point of being able to focus on the subject and not worry about it. If your image can be cropped so that only the subject is captured by your sensor, then you’ll be looking at a larger pixel size image that you’ll be able to work with.

There are some very good examples of cameras with sensor sizes that are too large (Full Frame, APS-C, M3/4) that come with a lens that will allow you to focus on subjects that are smaller than your camera body. There are also smaller lenses that allow you to shoot at less than f/2.8, even at full aperture. You’ll need to find out what the camera body will allow if you shoot full frame and then take your sensor size to a level that allows you to use smaller lenses and a larger sensor in that camera.

Here are a couple of images that illustrate this point of view:

It’s a great idea to check your camera’s sensor size on the camera body you plan to shoot and to use any image that you find that you really like and find that your sensor doesn’t allow you to take full frame at this size. It won’t be possible to film at f/2.8 at the full aperture if you shoot at f/4, for instance, but still make the necessary adjustments.

If you decide to take one of these cameras at a larger or smaller sensor size, you’ll need to make those adjustments in the post-processing and compositing applications of Lightroom or other Adobe software. So take a look at the images and make any necessary adjustments to make sure the image is shooting as it should, including adjustments for lens sizes that will allow you to have both smaller crop areas and wider apertures.

6 thoughts on “What is the sensor size of the camera?

  • Gregore Mc
    August 10, 2020 at 3:22 pm

    You should buy full frame sensor camera only if you need the best image quality. Otherwise, you might be looking at a lot of money for a DSLR camera.
    I am a professional photographer and have many of these cameras in my photography arsenal. I shoot mainly with a Canon 5D series and a Panasonic LUMIX GF1. I don’t mind upgrading as long as I have a good reason for upgrading.
    I have also read a lot of reviews on the camera that you can find here. The main review that I have read is by a person by the name of Mr. K. A. Kao. He has also wrote a book which you can find on Amazon. He is quite a smart and experienced person.
    I have had a Panasonic Lumix L series since 2009. At that time I was using an old 5D model so I had been getting quite a bit of use out of that. The L series does have its own flaws. The main one I encountered was some problems with it in low light (when compared with a DSLR camera, of course). There were also issues with battery life. But overall the Lumix is an excellent product.

    In the last 7 years, I have also bought 4 different Panasonic Lumix L series cameras (L1, L2, L3, L4). I have used these 4 models for everything from wedding parties to portrait work. I have been very satisfied with them. The L series does not have the best image quality for low light pictures but it gives up it’s competition in other areas. The L series is very light so it takes up very little space. This makes them perfect for weddings and even some other events like photo shoots (as in this review). For me, having this kind of camera made me feel more confident about taking pictures. It has helped me to gain a better understanding of my own work and helped me to get better photos.
    The main thing which I do not like about the L series is that it has a lot of image stabilisation. I find that this stabilisation can have a negative influence on the image quality. I have also read that the L series has a shutter lag of over 2 seconds. The shutter lag is due to image stabilisation. If I have a good light, my pictures usually comes out good but sometimes I notice that it is quite laggy when it is too dark. This also applies to low light pictures. This is my main beef with these cameras. So in conclusion, I feel that the L series is an excellent product but I do wish it had better image quality. It has been a while since I have bought one so I’m not sure if there are any changes I can make but I’d like to see the L series improve.

    For now though, I will be sticking with my DSLR camera and the Panasonic Lumix L series.
    In conclusion, I can only recommend the Lumix L series but I have no issues with either the L series or the 5D series. They are both good cameras.
    My current camera is an Olympus OM-D E-M1. It is one of the most popular cameras ever made. It is a full frame camera which is good for most purposes. It is also affordable which makes it a great choice for those who don’t want to spend a lot of money.

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