Quote (succulentdesire @ 14 Jun 2011 21:13)
the size of your sensor.
a full frame sensor gives you better iq than a cropped one. most lower end cameras have a cropped sensor. 1.6x for canon and 1.5x for nikon and I don't know about the other brands lol the bigger your sensor the more MP as well as the less chance of hot pixel noise
I'm waiting for eek to come and blow everyone away with his awesome explanations. I may be wrong
mp has nothing to do with it. a 5d c has 10 mp and a 5dii has 24 mp. you can get a 12 mp digital compact camera but it has the sensor size of a pin.
sensor size directly effect Iq
heres a copy and paste from adorama.com:
Here’s what happens when your camera has a really tiny sensor with a high pixel count:
1. The individual pixels have to be made smaller. A sensor is made up of many tiny receptors, called pixels, which record light. The larger these sensors are, the more sensitive to light they are, and that benefits image quality. A “pixel pitch” of 6-8 microns is very good. But a typical compact camera’s pixel pitch is going to be less than 2 microns. In some cases, much less.
2. Deviated septums. On a larger sensor, each pixel is separated by a septum to prevent light from falling off from one pixel to its neighbor. Smaller sensors lack these septums and as a result, light spills across sensors, causing a kind of internal flare and reducing overall image contrast.
3. Making a lot of noise. To make up for the small pixel size, camera makers boost the gain in trying to capture a usable image, but this results in what we call digital noise, on photos especially in low light or shadowy areas. The graininess gets worse as ISO is increased.
also heres sensor size per camera:
Another thing to consider is that on a cropped body your lens has a different feild of view because of the sensor size. if you want explanations pm me or ask here