Photo Tips: Pixel

Many people do not really understand about how pixels work, and blindly chasing for higher camera pixel. First of all, what is pixel? Pixel is the smallest image-forming unit of an image or video display. In a simpler word, every digital image is formed by many dots, and these dots are called pixel. An image with one mega pixels mean the image is formed by 1,000,000 dots.

For printing, a standard printing resolution is 300 dots per inch (dpi). Which mean the printer print a photo with 300 dots (pixel) every inch. A 4R photo is 4 inch x 6 inch, therefore a total pixel of 4R photo is (300 x 4) x (300 x 6) which equal to 2,160 000 pixel, 2 mega pixel. So, here you see, are you often printing your photo? Or, are you going to print larger than 4R? So why are you keep chasing for higher camera pixel?

If your answer is yes, you are going to print larger than 4R, and then I will recommend you a DSLR with a proper lens.

No doubt, higher pixels allow for larger printing, but it is just one of the conditions for larger printing, there is still other important condition. What is it? The answer is the lens resolution and sensor size. Basically, larger the sensor size, higher the image quality (definitely DSLR sensor size is larger than compact camera), and the lens resolution are depends.

Here is an example. Image A was capture by a 6 mega pixel DLSR with a high resolution lens; where else image B was capture by a 15 mega pixel DLSR with low resolution lens.


Image A: 6MP, high resolution lens.


Image B: 15MP, low resolution lens.

Maybe in this kind of size, your eyes could not make any differences, but after it has enlarged 100%, you will see this.


Image A: 6MP, high resolution lens.


Image B: 15MP, low resolution lens.

So now u judge, which photo can be enlarge better?
If your camera has a finger nail size of lens and sensor, 1 tera-pixel is a useless. Pixel does not make your image sharper, nicer or more beautiful, it only allow larger printing.
So stop blindly chasing for higher pixel :)