Both Panasonic ZS60 and Canon 550D have 18.0 MP resolution sensors but Panasonic ZS60's sensor is 1/2.3-inch (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) and Canon 550D's sensor is APS-C (22.3 x 14.9 mm ).
Since Canon 550D'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 Panasonic ZS60.
Below you can see the ZS60 and 550D sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Panasonic ZS60 and Canon 550D Cameras
As seen above, Canon 550D has a 11.8x Larger sensor area than Panasonic ZS60. 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 ZS60 and Canon 550D sensors have been tested by DxO and the results show that 550D has a better overall score of 66, 29 points higher compared to ZS60's score of 37.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Panasonic ZS60
37
19.3 bits
10.6 Evs
109 ISO
Canon 550D
66
22.0 bits
11.6 Evs
807 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 ZS60
or the
Canon 550D ,
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.
