Both Panasonic LX5 and Canon G12 have 10.0 MP resolution sensors but Panasonic LX5's sensor is 1/1.63-inch (8.07 x 5.56 mm ) and Canon G12's sensor is 1/1.7-inch (7.44 x 5.58 mm ).
Since Panasonic LX5'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 Canon G12.
Below you can see the LX5 and G12 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Panasonic LX5 and Canon G12 Cameras
Panasonic LX5 and Canon G12 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. Panasonic LX5 and Canon G12 sensors have been tested by DxO and the results show that G12 has a better overall score of 47, 6 points higher compared to LX5's score of 41.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Panasonic LX5
41
19.6 bits
10.8 Evs
132 ISO
Canon G12
47
20.4 bits
11.2 Evs
161 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 LX5
or the
Canon G12 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
One thing to watch when comparing these two: they have different sensor sizes
(1/1.63-inch versus 1/1.7-inch),
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.
