Full frame VS. full frame

[DjBeau]

Hi

I've been doing some reading on the whole full frame vs. crop sensor theme. What I've found out is that full frame sensors can produce somehow sharper images since the mega pixels are not crammed into a tight space (such as a crop sensor) which prevents "pixel bleeding" - thus producing more "defined" pixels.

But now I'm wondering: Will a Nikon D700 with its 12 mega pixels in theory produce sharper / more well defined images than for example a Canon 5D MKII since the 5D with 24 mega pixels is cramming twice as many pixels into a sensor of the same size?

Best regards
Beau

 

[prodigy2k7]

sharpness depends on a lot of things really...

Use the search function, im sure you will find lots on this subject... The thing is, the bigger the pixel, the more light it gathers, which is able to produce more accurate representation. This is why when you amplify the signal (ISO) it is more accurate and less noisy on the expensive full frame bodies because their pixels are larger... I dont believe pixel size has any affect on image quality when it comes to sharpness though, I believe BASICALLY, bigger pixels is better ISO performance... I believe the Nikon D3 is the best performance at that...

 

[Sw1tchFX]

As far as per-pixel sharpness goes, yes the D3/D700 are sharper, but the 5DII, D3x, and A900 are inherently sharper anyway though because they simply have more resolution. the D3x and A900 have the same pixel density as a D200.

 

[JerryPH]

Though FX does increase sharpness a small amount, lens quality more than anything else will define picture sharpness.

If I take a picture with my D200 and the D700 and use a "kit lens" on the D700, the D200 *will* take a sharper picture with a good lens on it than the D700 and kit lens. Been there and done that.

 

[Marc Kurth]

Though FX does increase sharpness a small amount, lens quality more than anything else will define picture sharpness.

If I take a picture with my D200 and the D700 and use a "kit lens" on the D700, the D200 *will* take a sharper picture with a good lens on it than the D700 and kit lens. Been there and done that.

Agree and disagree - it's a matter of how far you push the concept. With a given lens quality, the D700's lower pixel density is actually more forgiving than the D200. The key being "for a given lens". Lenses that I was ready to trash because of mediocre performance on my D2x & D200 bodies got a new lease on life with the 700.

BUT YES, "sharpness" is a complicated thing to properly define. I have billboard images and double truck magazine spreads shot with D70's. Glass, lighting, exposure and file processing are all much, much bigger factors than DX vs. FX.

Respectfully,

Marc