Both Fujifilm XQ2 and Olympus E-PM1 have 12.0 MP resolution sensors but Fujifilm XQ2's sensor is 2/3' (8.8 x 6.6 mm ) and Olympus E-PM1's sensor is Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ).
Since Olympus E-PM1'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 Fujifilm XQ2.
Below you can see the XQ2 and E-PM1 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Fujifilm XQ2 and Olympus E-PM1 Cameras
As seen above, Olympus E-PM1 has a 3.9x Larger sensor area than Fujifilm XQ2. 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
Fujifilm XQ2
or the
Olympus E-PM1 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
One thing to watch when comparing these two: they have different sensor sizes
(2/3' 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.
