Nikon D90 has a
12.0MP APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm ) sized CMOS sensor . On the other hand, Nikon D5100 has a
16.0MP APS-C (23.6 x 15.7 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Expeed 2 processor.
Below you can see the D90 and D5100 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Nikon D90 and Nikon D5100 Cameras
Nikon D90 and Nikon D5100 have almost the same sensor size, so neither of them has any significant advantage over the other in terms of providing control over depth of field when used with the same focal length and aperture.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
DxOMark is a benchmark that scientifically assesses image quality of camera sensors. It 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. Nikon D90 and Nikon D5100 sensors have been tested by DxO and the results show that D5100 has a better overall score of 80, 7 points higher compared to D90's score of 73.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Nikon D90
73
22.7 bits
12.5 Evs
977 ISO
Nikon D5100
80
23.5 bits
13.6 Evs
1183 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
Nikon D90
or the
Nikon D5100 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
