Canon EOS M6 vs. Sony Alpha 7S II

Comparison

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EOS M6 image
vs
Alpha 7S II image
Canon EOS M6 Sony Alpha 7S II
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Megapixels
24.20
12.20
Max. image resolution
6000 x 4000
4240 x 2832

Sensor

Sensor type
CMOS
CMOS
Sensor size
22.3 x 14.9 mm
35.6 x 23.8 mm
Sensor resolution
6026 x 4017
4278 x 2852
Diagonal
26.82 mm
42.82 mm
Sensor size comparison
Sensor size is generally a good indicator of the quality of the camera. Sensors can vary greatly in size. As a general rule, the bigger the sensor, the better the image quality.

Bigger sensors are more effective because they have more surface area to capture light. An important factor when comparing digital cameras is also camera generation. Generally, newer sensors will outperform the older.

Learn more about sensor sizes »

Actual sensor size

Note: Actual size is set to screen → change »
vs
1 : 2.55
(ratio)
Canon EOS M6 Sony Alpha 7S II
Surface area:
332.27 mm² vs 847.28 mm²
Difference: 515.01 mm² (155%)
Alpha 7S II sensor is approx. 2.55x bigger than M6 sensor.
Note: You are comparing cameras of different generations. There is a 2 year gap between Canon M6 (2017) and Sony Alpha 7S II (2015). All things being equal, newer sensor generations generally outperform the older.
Pixel pitch
3.7 µm
8.32 µm
Pixel pitch tells you the distance from the center of one pixel (photosite) to the center of the next. It tells you how close the pixels are to each other.

The bigger the pixel pitch, the further apart they are and the bigger each pixel is. Bigger pixels tend to have better signal to noise ratio and greater dynamic range.
Difference: 4.62 µm (125%)
Pixel pitch of Alpha 7S II is approx. 125% higher than pixel pitch of M6.
Pixel area
13.69 µm²
69.22 µm²
Pixel or photosite area affects how much light per pixel can be gathered. The larger it is the more light can be collected by a single pixel.

Larger pixels have the potential to collect more photons, resulting in greater dynamic range, while smaller pixels provide higher resolutions (more detail) for a given sensor size.
Relative pixel sizes:
vs
Pixel area difference: 55.53 µm² (406%)
A pixel on Sony Alpha 7S II sensor is approx. 406% bigger than a pixel on Canon M6.
Pixel density
7.3 MP/cm²
1.44 MP/cm²
Pixel density tells you how many million pixels fit or would fit in one square cm of the sensor.

Higher pixel density means smaller pixels and lower pixel density means larger pixels.
Difference: 5.86 µm (407%)
Canon M6 has approx. 407% higher pixel density than Sony Alpha 7S II.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Canon M6
Sony Alpha 7S II
Crop factor
1.61
1.01
Total megapixels
25.80
12.40
Effective megapixels
24.20
12.20
Optical zoom
Digital zoom
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 100-25600
Auto, 100-102400 (expandable to 50-409600)
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
Macro focus range
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
Aperture priority
Yes
Yes
Max. aperture
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
n/a
n/a
Metering
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot, Partial
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Exposure compensation
±3 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±5 EV (in 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
Yes
Min. shutter speed
30 sec
30 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/4000 sec
1/8000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Electronic (optional)
Electronic
White balance presets
6
10
Screen size
3"
3"
Screen resolution
1,040,000 dots
1,228,800 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
1920x1080 (60p/50p/30p/25p/24p)
3840x2160 (30p/25p/24p)
Storage types
SD/SDHC/SDXC
SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
LP-E17 lithium-ion battery
Rechargeable battery pack NP-FW50
Weight
343 g
627 g
Dimensions
112 x 68 x 44.5 mm
126.9 x 95.7 x 60.3 mm
Year
2017
2015




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vs

Diagonal

Diagonal is calculated by the use of Pythagorean theorem:
Diagonal =  w² + h²
where w = sensor width and h = sensor height

Canon M6 diagonal

w = 22.30 mm
h = 14.90 mm
Diagonal =  22.30² + 14.90²   = 26.82 mm

Sony Alpha 7S II diagonal

w = 35.60 mm
h = 23.80 mm
Diagonal =  35.60² + 23.80²   = 42.82 mm


Surface area

Surface area is calculated by multiplying the width and the height of a sensor.

M6 sensor area

Width = 22.30 mm
Height = 14.90 mm

Surface area = 22.30 × 14.90 = 332.27 mm²

Alpha 7S II sensor area

Width = 35.60 mm
Height = 23.80 mm

Surface area = 35.60 × 23.80 = 847.28 mm²


Pixel pitch

Pixel pitch is the distance from the center of one pixel to the center of the next measured in micrometers (µm). It can be calculated with the following formula:
Pixel pitch =   sensor width in mm  × 1000
sensor resolution width in pixels

M6 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 22.30 mm
Sensor resolution width = 6026 pixels
Pixel pitch =   22.30  × 1000  = 3.7 µm
6026

Alpha 7S II pixel pitch

Sensor width = 35.60 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4278 pixels
Pixel pitch =   35.60  × 1000  = 8.32 µm
4278


Pixel area

The area of one pixel can be calculated by simply squaring the pixel pitch:
Pixel area = pixel pitch²

You could also divide sensor surface area with effective megapixels:
Pixel area =   sensor surface area in mm²
effective megapixels

M6 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 3.7 µm

Pixel area = 3.7² = 13.69 µm²

Alpha 7S II pixel area

Pixel pitch = 8.32 µm

Pixel area = 8.32² = 69.22 µm²


Pixel density

Pixel density can be calculated with the following formula:
Pixel density =  ( sensor resolution width in pixels )² / 1000000
sensor width in cm

One could also use this formula:
Pixel density =   effective megapixels × 1000000  / 10000
sensor surface area in mm²

M6 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 6026 pixels
Sensor width = 2.23 cm

Pixel density = (6026 / 2.23)² / 1000000 = 7.3 MP/cm²

Alpha 7S II pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4278 pixels
Sensor width = 3.56 cm

Pixel density = (4278 / 3.56)² / 1000000 = 1.44 MP/cm²


Sensor resolution

Sensor resolution is calculated from sensor size and effective megapixels. It's slightly higher than maximum (not interpolated) image resolution which is usually stated on camera specifications. Sensor resolution is used in pixel pitch, pixel area, and pixel density formula. For sake of simplicity, we're going to calculate it in 3 stages.

1. First we need to find the ratio between horizontal and vertical length by dividing the former with the latter (aspect ratio). It's usually 1.33 (4:3) or 1.5 (3:2), but not always.

2. With the ratio (r) known we can calculate the X from the formula below, where X is a vertical number of pixels:
(X × r) × X = effective megapixels × 1000000    →   
X =  effective megapixels × 1000000
r
3. To get sensor resolution we then multiply X with the corresponding ratio:

Resolution horizontal: X × r
Resolution vertical: X

M6 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 22.30 mm
Sensor height = 14.90 mm
Effective megapixels = 24.20
r = 22.30/14.90 = 1.5
X =  24.20 × 1000000  = 4017
1.5
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 4017 × 1.5 = 6026
Resolution vertical: X = 4017

Sensor resolution = 6026 x 4017

Alpha 7S II sensor resolution

Sensor width = 35.60 mm
Sensor height = 23.80 mm
Effective megapixels = 12.20
r = 35.60/23.80 = 1.5
X =  12.20 × 1000000  = 2852
1.5
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 2852 × 1.5 = 4278
Resolution vertical: X = 2852

Sensor resolution = 4278 x 2852


Crop factor

Crop factor or focal length multiplier is calculated by dividing the diagonal of 35 mm film (43.27 mm) with the diagonal of the sensor.
Crop factor =   43.27 mm
sensor diagonal in mm


M6 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 26.82 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 1.61
26.82

Alpha 7S II crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 42.82 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 1.01
42.82

35 mm equivalent aperture

Equivalent aperture (in 135 film terms) is calculated by multiplying lens aperture with crop factor (a.k.a. focal length multiplier).

M6 equivalent aperture

Aperture is a lens characteristic, so it's calculated only for fixed lens cameras. If you want to know the equivalent aperture for Canon M6, take the aperture of the lens you're using and multiply it with crop factor.

Crop factor for Canon M6 is 1.61

Alpha 7S II equivalent aperture

Aperture is a lens characteristic, so it's calculated only for fixed lens cameras. If you want to know the equivalent aperture for Sony Alpha 7S II, take the aperture of the lens you're using and multiply it with crop factor.

Crop factor for Sony Alpha 7S II is 1.01

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