Question Regarding # of Megapixels

[Tron5000]

I am very amateur in my photography, basically just snapping shots of friends and pets and things of that nature. I'm using a Canon A1100is 12.1MP that I received for Christmas in 2009. While messing around on the computer I noticed that the file size of some of my pictures was 3.5-3.8MB. I figured that was probably a lot for a picture.

My dad has always had an interest in photography, so I gave him a ring. He told me that for my purposes I really don't need to shoot using more than 5MP. The pictures come out looking great in 4X6 and the files are not nearly as large. So over Christmas I decided to shoot all my pics using the 5MP setting. They all look perfectly fine to me, but then again I'm very unknowledgeable on these things. Probably should look into a couple easy photography books.

I'm wondering if shooting in the 5MP instead of 12.1MP is such a good idea. With technology these days, I can create a slideshow on my MacBook and show it on my 46" Samsung. With these types of capabilities, and who knows what else coming in the future, shouldn't I want the resolution of my pictures to be as high as possible? After all, I can purchase a 2TB external hard drive for $100. Given the affordable digital storage options, is 3.5Mb really that much space for a nice-looking picture to take up?

Thanks for any replies. Looking forward to learning a thing or two on this forum.

 

[flea77]

Your 46" samsung is very low resolution. The highest "hi-def" on the market right now is 1920x1080, a 4x6 print is typically 1200x1800 so they are pretty close.

Shooting at higher MP allows you to crop to a smaller picture easier, and allows you to print larger. That's about it.

Allan

 

[rainking]

If you plan to crop, the high megapixel will help a lot. Also, if you plan to print large prints, high megapixel will help.

4mb / pictures is really not that much especially with the hard drive capacity and price per giga byte. I shoot RAW and my picture size is around 20mb / file plus 10mb / picture after I process them.

 

[BuS_RiDeR]

5mp is fine if you don't plan to crop a whole lot or print large prints. And by large I mean REALLY large... you should be fine with anything 8x10 or smaller... You could probably go a bit bigger...

One of the biggest advantages you'll see at using 5MP with that camera, is that you will be able to take many more pictures before filling up the memory card.

 

[BuS_RiDeR]

Damn you Rainking... you beat me too it.

 

[Stradawhovious]

This might help.

Design215 megapixels comparison and maximum print size charts

Like stated above, higher MP is great for cropping.

Sensor size is more important than MP count. A 5 MP point and shoot with a tiny tiny sensor will not yield nearly as good of photos as a 5MP DSLR with a much larger sensor.

 

[Tron5000]

Right on. Thanks for the input. I did notice that the available pictures on my card jumped from 800 or so to over 2000.

I go to a lot of Braves and Falcons games and like to zoom in as far as possible on the players. Should I use a higher MP for those purposes, long-distance subjects?

 

[rainking]

Right on. Thanks for the input. I did notice that the available pictures on my card jumped from 800 or so to over 2000.

I go to a lot of Braves and Falcons games and like to zoom in as far as possible on the players. Should I use a higher MP for those purposes, long-distance subjects?

Yes, that will allow you to crop tighter.

 

[BuS_RiDeR]

I go to a lot of Braves and Falcons games and like to zoom in as far as possible on the players. Should I use a higher MP for those purposes, long-distance subjects?

If you are using optical zoom you are fine... If you are using digital zoom... use the highest MP you can.

 

[LittleMike]

I would shoot at the highest quality possible. 3-4mb really isn't that much. After editing, I have some that are over 1gb (I always save two copies. One as a PSD, and the other as a jpeg).

 

[KmH]

This might help.

Design215 megapixels comparison and maximum print size charts

The information in the posted link is out of date and of questionable use.

 

[Stradawhovious]

This might help.

Design215 megapixels comparison and maximum print size charts

The information in the posted link is out of date and of questionable use.

Good thing I used the word "might" then.

Do you have more updated and useful information for him then, or did you just want to steer him clear of that site?