Panasonic GF1 has a
12.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Venus Engine HD processor. On the other hand, Canon M100 has a
24.0MP APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features DIGIC 7 processor.
Canon M100's sensor provides 12MP more than Panasonic GF1'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 GF1 and M100 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Panasonic GF1 and Canon M100 Cameras
As seen above, Canon M100 has a 1.5x Larger sensor area than Panasonic GF1. 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.
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. Panasonic GF1 and Canon M100 sensors have been tested by DxO and the results show that M100 has a better overall score of 79, 25 points higher compared to GF1's score of 54.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Panasonic GF1
54
21.2 bits
10.3 Evs
513 ISO
Canon M100
79
23.5 bits
13.0 Evs
1272 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
Panasonic GF1
or the
Canon M100 ,
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.
