Nikon D5100 has a
16.0MP APS-C (23.6 x 15.7 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Expeed 2 processor. On the other hand, Nikon D5000 has a
12.0MP APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Expeed processor.
Below you can see the D5100 and D5000 sensor size comparison.
Nikon D5100 and Nikon D5000 have almost the same sensor size, so neither of them has any significant advantage over the other in terms of providing control over depth of field when used with the same focal length and aperture.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
Both Nikon D5100 and Nikon D5000 sensors have been tested by DxoMark. DxoMark scores camera sensors for color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape) and low-light sensitivity (DXO Sports), and also gives them an overall score. Of the two cameras that we are comparing, D5100 has scored 80, 8 points higher than D5000.
Model |
Overall |
Color Depth |
Dynamic Range |
Low-light ISO |
Nikon D5100 |
80 |
23.5 bits |
13.6 Evs |
1183 ISO |
Nikon D5000 |
72 |
22.7 bits |
12.5 Evs |
868 ISO |