Canon 5D MII has a
21.0MP Full frame (36 x 24 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Digic 4 processor. On the other hand, Canon 1D MIV has a
16.0MP APS-H (27.9 x 18.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Digic 4 processor.
Canon 5D MII's sensor provides 5MP more than Canon 1D MIV's sensor, which gives a significant advantage in real life. You can print your images larger or crop more freely.
On the other hand, please keep in mind that Max sensor resolution is not the only determinant of resolving power. Factors such as the optical elements, low pass filter, pixel size and sensor technology also affects the final resolution of the captured image.
Below you can see the 5D MII and 1D MIV sensor size comparison.
As seen above, Canon 5D MII has a 1.7x Larger sensor area than Canon 1D MIV. 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 5D MII and Canon 1D MIV 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, 5D MII has scored 79, 5 points higher than 1D MIV.
Model |
Overall |
Color Depth |
Dynamic Range |
Low-light ISO |
Canon 5D MII |
79 |
23.7 bits |
11.9 Evs |
1815 ISO |
Canon 1D MIV |
74 |
22.8 bits |
12.0 Evs |
1320 ISO |