Both Nikon AW110 and Nikon D7000 have 16.0 MP resolution sensors but Nikon AW110's sensor is 1/2.3-inch (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) and Nikon D7000's sensor is APS-C (23.6 x 15.7 mm ).
Since Nikon D7000'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 Nikon AW110.
Below you can see the AW110 and D7000 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Nikon AW110 and Nikon D7000 Cameras
As seen above, Nikon D7000 has a 13.2x Larger sensor area than Nikon AW110. 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
Nikon AW110
or the
Nikon D7000 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
One thing to watch when comparing these two: they have different sensor sizes
(1/2.3-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.
