Bill Pierce
Well-known
I’ve been asked to elaborate further on my comments on Canon’s 50mg sensor. Here goes.
What most folks are most interested in from more megapixels is the ability to create larger prints while still holding fine detail. When you talk about megapixels, you are talking about the number of pixels in a given area,the surface of a sensor. When you talk about print size, you are normally talking about the width and/or height of the print. So jumping from a full frame 12.5 megapixel sensor, something pretty common in professional cameras of just a few years ago, to today’s 50 mg, you only increase the width or height by a factor of two. The level of detail you saw in an 8x10 print will now be maintained in a 16x20 print, not a 32x40 print.
Fighting against the increase in fine detail is increased noise level of smaller pixels if you take pictures at very high ISO’s, the need for better lenses/more accurate focus and the degradation of the image from camera motion and mirror slap.
(On the other hand, one hopes that viewers look at larger prints from a further distance.}
Street and news photographers and their kin gain from the ability to crop in to the image from a high megapixel sensor. Architectural photographers, landscape photographers and all those folks who can use a tripod even at low ISO’s, raise an SLR mirror before taking the picture and use a good lens accurately focused at its optimum aperture will be able to make stunning large prints.
If there is a message, it is this - to take advantage of the larger megapixel count you are going to have to use excellent shooting technique, not just a sensor with more megapixels. And, if you quadruple the pixel size, you only double the dimensions of the print that will have the same level of fine detail if you are one of those folks who press their nose against the print.
For me, it’s real simple. For the most part, you have to be interested in big prints and be a slow, methodical shooter. If you are a sports, wildlife, street or news photographer who is always cropping, here's something you should also investigate. If you think a brace of Sigma Quatros would be nice, but already own a lot of Canon gear, here's something you should probably investigate. But, the most complete answer is not going to come until theses cameras have been in the hands of a variety of photographers for a reasonable period of time.
Your predictions?
What most folks are most interested in from more megapixels is the ability to create larger prints while still holding fine detail. When you talk about megapixels, you are talking about the number of pixels in a given area,the surface of a sensor. When you talk about print size, you are normally talking about the width and/or height of the print. So jumping from a full frame 12.5 megapixel sensor, something pretty common in professional cameras of just a few years ago, to today’s 50 mg, you only increase the width or height by a factor of two. The level of detail you saw in an 8x10 print will now be maintained in a 16x20 print, not a 32x40 print.
Fighting against the increase in fine detail is increased noise level of smaller pixels if you take pictures at very high ISO’s, the need for better lenses/more accurate focus and the degradation of the image from camera motion and mirror slap.
(On the other hand, one hopes that viewers look at larger prints from a further distance.}
Street and news photographers and their kin gain from the ability to crop in to the image from a high megapixel sensor. Architectural photographers, landscape photographers and all those folks who can use a tripod even at low ISO’s, raise an SLR mirror before taking the picture and use a good lens accurately focused at its optimum aperture will be able to make stunning large prints.
If there is a message, it is this - to take advantage of the larger megapixel count you are going to have to use excellent shooting technique, not just a sensor with more megapixels. And, if you quadruple the pixel size, you only double the dimensions of the print that will have the same level of fine detail if you are one of those folks who press their nose against the print.
For me, it’s real simple. For the most part, you have to be interested in big prints and be a slow, methodical shooter. If you are a sports, wildlife, street or news photographer who is always cropping, here's something you should also investigate. If you think a brace of Sigma Quatros would be nice, but already own a lot of Canon gear, here's something you should probably investigate. But, the most complete answer is not going to come until theses cameras have been in the hands of a variety of photographers for a reasonable period of time.
Your predictions?
