Both Canon 1D MIV and Olympus E-PL7 have 16.0 MP resolution sensors but Canon 1D MIV's sensor is APS-H (27.9 x 18.6 mm ) and Olympus E-PL7's sensor is Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ).
Since Canon 1D MIV's has a larger sensor area with the same resolution, this means that it also has a larger pixel area hence better light collecting capacity for a given aperture compared to Olympus E-PL7.
Below you can see the 1D MIV and E-PL7 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Canon 1D MIV and Olympus E-PL7 Cameras
As seen above, Canon 1D MIV has a 2.3x Larger sensor area than Olympus E-PL7. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
Both Canon 1D MIV and Olympus E-PL7 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, 1D MIV has scored 74, 2 points higher than E-PL7.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Canon 1D MIV
74
22.8 bits
12.0 Evs
1320 ISO
Olympus E-PL7
72
22.7 bits
12.4 Evs
873 ISO
Sensor size sets the circle of confusion, so it drives how much depth of field each
of these bodies gives you at a given aperture. You can calculate it exactly for the
Canon 1D MIV
or the
Olympus E-PL7 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
One thing to watch when comparing these two: they have different sensor sizes
(APS-H versus Four Thirds),
so compare them at the same framing rather than the same focal length.
Put the same focal length on the smaller sensor and it will show less depth of
field, not more, because it also crops tighter. The calculator shows the
full frame equivalent focal length for each body so you can match the framing.
