Sensor Size Comparison: Full Frame vs Cropped
Underwater photography often involves choosing between different types of camera sensors: Full Frame, Cropped (APS-C), Micro Four Thirds, and Compact sensors. Each type offers distinct advantages and disadvantages.
Advantages and Disadvantages by Sensor Type
Full Frame Sensors
- Advantages:
- Superior image quality with better low-light performance and greater dynamic range.
- Generally produce less noise and better color depth.
- Capability to use wide-aperture lenses for shallow depth of field.
- Disadvantages:
- Larger and heavier, requiring more substantial underwater housings.
- Generally more expensive not only for the camera but also for the housing and lenses.
Cropped (APS-C) Sensors
- Advantages:
- Smaller and lighter than full-frame systems, making them somewhat easier to handle underwater.
- Often more affordable than full-frame systems while still offering good image quality.
- Better telephoto reach due to the crop factor.
- Disadvantages:
- Lower image quality compared to full-frame, with potential for more noise and less dynamic range.
- Requires a larger housing compared to Micro Four Thirds.
Micro Four Thirds Sensors
- Advantages:
- Compact size makes the entire setup smaller and more convenient for underwater use.
- Offers a wide range of lenses with good optical quality.
- Generally more affordable than full-frame systems.
- Disadvantages:
- Image quality may not match that of full-frame, though it is still very good.
- Depth of field can be deeper due to the smaller sensor size, which may not be ideal for all creative applications.
Compact Sensors
- Advantages:
- Extremely compact and lightweight, perfect for casual divers or those needing a small setup.
- Often waterproof without needing a separate housing, making them very convenient.
- Typically more affordable than interchangeable-lens systems.
- Disadvantages:
- Limited image quality and performance in low-light conditions.
- Less control over settings (e.g., aperture, shutter speed).
- Lens quality may not be as high as in larger systems.
General Considerations
When choosing a sensor type for underwater photography, key factors include cost, portability, and desired image quality. Full-frame sensors offer superior image quality but are larger and more expensive. Compact sensors are convenient but compromise on image quality. APS-C and Micro Four Thirds sensors provide a balance between size, cost, and image quality.
- Compact underwater cameras allow changing wet lenses underwater, giving the ability to go from wide angle to macro during a single dive.
- Compact underwater cameras can be noisy at high ISO owing to less dynamic range.
- Cropped sensors produce approximately 60% more depth of field than a full-frame sensor, given an equivalent field of view.
- APS-C (or 1.5x cropped sensor, 1.6x for Canon) are popular with underwater photographers.
- Compact underwater cameras are way cheaper, but the cost can escalate when adding wet lenses, adapters, etc.
- Well-liked compacts include Canon GX-7 Mark III, Olympus TG-6, and Sony RX100 VII.
- A full frame sensor measures 36 x 24 mm, while an APS-C sensor measures 22 x 15mm, making the full frame sensor effectively 2.6 times larger.
- Full frame cameras produce better quality images in low light conditions (high ISO performance).
- Full frame sensors offer superior optics, resulting in better image quality with increased dynamic range, better contrast, and images that 'pop'.
- The Olympus OM-D EM5 Mark III and the Panasonic GH5 are popular cameras that use micro-four-thirds sensors.
- For superior low-light performance and greater dynamic range, full-frame DSLRs are preferred for underwater photography, but they are larger, heavier, and more expensive.
- Cropped (APS-C) cameras offer a balance between size, cost, and image quality compared to full-frame, with better telephoto reach due to the crop factor.
- Micro Four Thirds cameras are compact, providing a wide range of lenses with good optical quality, and they are more affordable than full-frame systems.
- Compact cameras are the smallest and lightest, perfect for casual divers or those needing a small setup, often waterproof without needing a separate housing, and usually more affordable.
- When choosing a sensor type, cost, portability, and desired image quality are key factors, with full-frame offering superior image quality but being larger and more expensive, and compact sensors compromising on image quality for convenience.
- Changes in wet lenses can be made underwater with compact underwater cameras, allowing for transitions from wide angle to macro during a single dive, but these cameras can be noisy at high ISO due to less dynamic range.
- The Olympus OM-D EM5 Mark III and the Panasonic GH5, both using micro-four-thirds sensors, are popular choices among underwater photographers, producing images with increased dynamic range, better contrast, and better color depth.
