Olympus E-PL9 has a
16.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features TruePic VIII processor. On the other hand, Sigma DP1x has a
5.0MP APS-C (20.7 x 13.8 mm ) sized CMOS (Foveon X3) sensor and features True II processor.
Olympus E-PL9's sensor provides 11MP more than Sigma DP1x'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 E-PL9 and DP1x sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Olympus E-PL9 and Sigma DP1x Cameras
As seen above, Sigma DP1x has a 1.3x Larger sensor area than Olympus E-PL9. 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
Olympus E-PL9
or the
Sigma DP1x ,
including hyperfocal distance.
One thing to watch when comparing these two: they have different sensor sizes
(Four Thirds 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.
