Detail difference: 12mp and 6 mp camera's

[JennyS]

I knew I was very disappointed in the difference in image quality, detail at pixel level and sharpness in the photo's I've been taking this year - the comparison below shows why!

In fairness to the Fuji 200exr the quality is not much different to what I got from a Nikon P6000 and Panasonic Lumix LX3 at actual pixel level. Its really brought home to me that more pixels don't make for better photo's!

[squishy]

exactly! the only difference is if you gonna be printing BIG.

its not the number of MP, it's what you do with them!

[MeadsMan]

I still don`t really get it,but,will more megapixels allow for better quality heavy cropping ?

[squishy]

it depends, it allows you to crop more, but whether its good quality or not is determined by the lens and the camera

[Lancashire Lad]

My understanding is that there is more of a relationship between image quality and sensor size, than absolute pixel quantity.

It is general consensus that (for example) 6Mp of large pixels on a large sensor, would provide better image quality than 6Mp of smaller pixels on a smaller sensor.

If this is accepted, then it can easily be argued that 6Mp of large pixels might just as easily give the same sort of qualty image as 12Mp of smaller pixels on a smaller sensor.

Pixels have an ability to capture "light", and larger pixels can capture more of that light.

Obviously, this is a very simplistic view, and there are many other factors which come into play - quality of lens optics, the camera's interpolation software, etc. etc.

But discounting these other factors, more pixel quantity, doesn't necessarily guarantee more image quality.

Regards
Mike.

[Tringa]

LL has summed it up nicely. Better quality images are a result of a number of factors. The most obvious and probably easiest to understand (at least for me) are number of pixels, lens quality and sensor size.

All of the images I have posted on this site have been taken on an old Olympus C700 UZ. This is has 2.1Megapixels, which is

(a) tiny compared to most cameras today, and
(b) almost exactly the same number of pixels as my mobile phone

While my photos are no where near good quality they are OK, but they are absolutely miles ahead of the photos from my phone, due I'm pretty sure to the camera having a lens which is much better than that in the 'phone and also a larger sensor.

Sensor size will, for most people, never persuade them a buy camera X. To use the common term it is just not sexy. Seems bigger sensors are better, but they do not come cheap.
Lens quality is also a difficult one, though if we look at what professional photographers use, we'd probaly all be buying Nikons.
But number of pixel is an advertiser's dream. Numbers have a life of their own If camera X has 6Mp and is £300, then camera Y which is also £300 must be better if it has 10Mp, but this is only part of the picture (sorry, no pun intended).

I think the only way around this is to read, read, read to get a better idea of what a camera can do.