Both Canon SD990 IS and Samsung NX11 have 15.0 MP resolution sensors but Canon SD990 IS's sensor is 1/1.7-inch (7.44 x 5.58 mm ) and Samsung NX11's sensor is APS-C (23.4 x 15.6 mm ).
Since Samsung NX11'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 Canon SD990 IS.
Below you can see the SD990 IS and NX11 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Canon SD990 IS and Samsung NX11 Cameras
As seen above, Samsung NX11 has a 8.8x Larger sensor area than Canon SD990 IS. 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.
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 SD990 IS
or the
Samsung NX11 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
One thing to watch when comparing these two: they have different sensor sizes
(1/1.7-inch versus APS-C),
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.
