Both Sony A100 and Canon S95 have 10.0 MP resolution sensors but Sony A100's sensor is APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm ) and Canon S95's sensor is 1/1.7-inch (7.44 x 5.58 mm ).
Since Sony A100'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 S95.
Below you can see the A100 and S95 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Sony A100 and Canon S95 Cameras
As seen above, Sony A100 has a 9.0x Larger sensor area than Canon S95. 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
Both Sony A100 and Canon S95 sensors have been tested by DxoMark. DxoMark 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. Of the two cameras that we are comparing, A100 has scored 61, 14 points higher than S95.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Sony A100
61
22.0 bits
11.2 Evs
476 ISO
Canon S95
47
20.4 bits
11.3 Evs
153 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
Sony A100
or the
Canon S95 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
One thing to watch when comparing these two: they have different sensor sizes
(APS-C 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.
