There are two type of camera based on the size of its sensor, crop sensor camera and full frame camera. The size of sensor of full frame camera is bigger than the crop sensor SLR camera, what is the difference? Sectional area of full frame camera is 864 mm2 as compared with the crop sensor Canon cameras: 329 mm2, Nikon, Sony, Pentax: 370 mm2 and Olympus: 225 mm2
The impact of this different size is explain as this below:
1. Image Quality
In general, full frame camera has a better image quality than crop sensor camera, because of its larger size of sensor, especially at high ISO (low light photography). For the sharpness of images, it depends also with the lens used. If lenses are worn badly, hence the photo quality on a larger sensor camera can even be worse.
3. Not all lenses suitable for full frame camera
It is important for those who are considering to buy a full frame camera. Not all the lens is compatible, due to many manufacturers make lenses that are smaller and optimizing crop sensor crop camera. Conversely, all the lens that can be used in full frame camera, can fit to the crop frame camera.
Examples of incompatible lenses include Canon EF-S, Nikon DX, Tamron Dii, Sigma DC
2. Lens Focal Range
When we use the same lens, and we put on a full frame camera and the other crop camera frame, then there are differences in lens focal range. In full frame camera, the photo will look broader than the photo of crop sensor camera. This is because the crop sensor camera automatically crops the photos taken.
Each brand of camera has a slightly different ratio with each other. For example, Canon using ratio 1.6, Nikon, Pentax and Sony using ratio 1.5, Olympus second. This means that when the 100mm lens installed in the crop Canon camera, it will be like a 160mm plasticity in full-frame camera.
This effect is certainly favored by sports or wildlife photographer, for example with a 300mm lens, using a crop camera, like the 480mm range.
4. More vulnerable to blur
There is tendency that full frame camera is slightly more vulnerable to blur when the camera is shake compared with crop sensor camera. Consequently, we need to increase higher number of shutter speed to compensate that.
5. Depth of field
Because of a larger sensor size, the depth of field becomes smaller compared with a crop sensor camera. For example, a lens with f/1.4 aperture when used in full frame like the lens f / 1 (Resulted from 1.4 divided by the crop factor cameras such as Nikon 1.5) when used on a crop sensor camera.
6. Price
Due to a fact that larger sensor is more expensive, and not mass-produced as a crop sensor, so the full frame camera is also more expensive than the crop sensor camera. The new camera is worth at least USD2,500. There are also reaching USD7,000 or more while the new crop camera can be bought at a price ranging from around USD500 -600 .
Those are the main differences between full frame camera and crop sensor camera. Surely we can find other differences such as features and technology that is used. Sometimes technology that is used in the crop frame camera is more sophisticated than a full frame camera, for example, Canon 7D and Canon 5D Mark II. To determine the most suitable camera for you, surely must understand these differences so as not to throw money in vain.
Examples of full-frame cameras: Canon 5D Mark II, Nikon D700, Nikon D3, Sony Alpha A900. Examples of crop sensor camera: Canon 500D – 550D, Canon 40D, 50D, 7D, Nikon D3000, D5000, D90, Pentax KX, K20D, Olympus E-620, E-3, Sony A200 – A700, and others.
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Tags: Canon, crop sensor camera, Digital Photography, full frame camera, Nikon, Olympus, Pentax, photography camera, the difference