Canon EOS 550D vs. Nikon D3200
Comparison
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Canon EOS 550D | Nikon D3200 | ||||
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Megapixels
18.00
24.20
Max. image resolution
5184 x 3456
6016 x 4000
Sensor
Sensor type
CMOS
CMOS
Sensor size
22.3 x 14.9 mm
23.2 x 15.4 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 »
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 »
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Canon EOS 550D | Nikon D3200 |
Surface area:
332.27 mm² | vs | 357.28 mm² |
Difference: 25.01 mm² (8%)
D3200 sensor is approx. 1.08x bigger than 550D sensor.
Note: You are comparing cameras of different generations.
There is a 2 year gap between Canon 550D (2010) and Nikon D3200 (2012).
All things being equal, newer sensor generations generally outperform the older.
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.
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.
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.
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: 3.65 µm² (25%)
A pixel on Canon 550D sensor is approx. 25% bigger than a pixel on Nikon D3200.
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.
Higher pixel density means smaller pixels and lower pixel density means larger pixels.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers,
click here.
Specs
Canon 550D
Nikon D3200
Total megapixels
18.70
24.70
Effective megapixels
18.00
24.20
Optical zoom
Digital zoom
No
No
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800 (with boost)
Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400 (12800 with boost)
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
Macro focus range
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
Aperture priority
Yes
Yes
Max. aperture
Metering
63-zone Evaluative, Centre weighted, Evaluative, Spot
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot AF-area
Exposure compensation
±5 EV (in 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps)
±5 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
Yes
Min. shutter speed
30 sec
30 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/4000 sec
1/4000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Optical
Optical (pentamirror)
White balance presets
6
12
Screen size
3"
3"
Screen resolution
1,040,000 dots
921,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
1920x1080 (30p/25p/24p)
1920x1080 (30p/25p/24p)
Storage types
SDHC, SDXC, Secure Digital
SD/SDHC/SDXC UHS-I compliant
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
Li-Ion
Lithium-Ion EN-EL14 rechargeable battery
Weight
530 g
505 g
Dimensions
128.8 x 97.5 x 75.3 mm
125 x 96 x 77 mm
Year
2010
2012
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Diagonal
Diagonal is calculated by the use of Pythagorean theorem:
where w = sensor width and h = sensor height
Diagonal = √ | w² + h² |
Canon 550D diagonal
w = 22.30 mm
h = 14.90 mm
h = 14.90 mm
Diagonal = √ | 22.30² + 14.90² | = 26.82 mm |
Nikon D3200 diagonal
w = 23.20 mm
h = 15.40 mm
h = 15.40 mm
Diagonal = √ | 23.20² + 15.40² | = 27.85 mm |
Surface area
Surface area is calculated by multiplying the width and the height of a sensor.
550D sensor area
Width = 22.30 mm
Height = 14.90 mm
Surface area = 22.30 × 14.90 = 332.27 mm²
Height = 14.90 mm
Surface area = 22.30 × 14.90 = 332.27 mm²
D3200 sensor area
Width = 23.20 mm
Height = 15.40 mm
Surface area = 23.20 × 15.40 = 357.28 mm²
Height = 15.40 mm
Surface area = 23.20 × 15.40 = 357.28 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 |
550D pixel pitch
Sensor width = 22.30 mm
Sensor resolution width = 5196 pixels
Sensor resolution width = 5196 pixels
Pixel pitch = | 22.30 | × 1000 | = 4.29 µm |
5196 |
D3200 pixel pitch
Sensor width = 23.20 mm
Sensor resolution width = 6045 pixels
Sensor resolution width = 6045 pixels
Pixel pitch = | 23.20 | × 1000 | = 3.84 µm |
6045 |
Pixel area
The area of one pixel can be calculated by simply squaring the pixel pitch:
You could also divide sensor surface area with effective megapixels:
Pixel area = pixel pitch²
You could also divide sensor surface area with effective megapixels:
Pixel area = | sensor surface area in mm² |
effective megapixels |
550D pixel area
Pixel pitch = 4.29 µm
Pixel area = 4.29² = 18.4 µm²
Pixel area = 4.29² = 18.4 µm²
D3200 pixel area
Pixel pitch = 3.84 µm
Pixel area = 3.84² = 14.75 µm²
Pixel area = 3.84² = 14.75 µm²
Pixel density
Pixel density can be calculated with the following formula:
One could also use this 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 |
550D pixel density
Sensor resolution width = 5196 pixels
Sensor width = 2.23 cm
Pixel density = (5196 / 2.23)² / 1000000 = 5.43 MP/cm²
Sensor width = 2.23 cm
Pixel density = (5196 / 2.23)² / 1000000 = 5.43 MP/cm²
D3200 pixel density
Sensor resolution width = 6045 pixels
Sensor width = 2.32 cm
Pixel density = (6045 / 2.32)² / 1000000 = 6.79 MP/cm²
Sensor width = 2.32 cm
Pixel density = (6045 / 2.32)² / 1000000 = 6.79 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:
3. To get sensor resolution we then multiply X with the corresponding ratio:
Resolution horizontal: X × r
Resolution vertical: X
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 → |
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Resolution horizontal: X × r
Resolution vertical: X
550D sensor resolution
Sensor width = 22.30 mm
Sensor height = 14.90 mm
Effective megapixels = 18.00
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3464 × 1.5 = 5196
Resolution vertical: X = 3464
Sensor resolution = 5196 x 3464
Sensor height = 14.90 mm
Effective megapixels = 18.00
r = 22.30/14.90 = 1.5 |
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Resolution vertical: X = 3464
Sensor resolution = 5196 x 3464
D3200 sensor resolution
Sensor width = 23.20 mm
Sensor height = 15.40 mm
Effective megapixels = 24.20
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 4003 × 1.51 = 6045
Resolution vertical: X = 4003
Sensor resolution = 6045 x 4003
Sensor height = 15.40 mm
Effective megapixels = 24.20
r = 23.20/15.40 = 1.51 |
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Resolution vertical: X = 4003
Sensor resolution = 6045 x 4003
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 |
550D crop factor
Sensor diagonal in mm = 26.82 mm
Crop factor = | 43.27 | = 1.61 |
26.82 |
D3200 crop factor
Sensor diagonal in mm = 27.85 mm
Crop factor = | 43.27 | = 1.55 |
27.85 |
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).
550D 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 550D, take the aperture of the lens
you're using and multiply it with crop factor.
Crop factor for Canon 550D is 1.61
Crop factor for Canon 550D is 1.61
D3200 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
Nikon D3200, take the aperture of the lens
you're using and multiply it with crop factor.
Crop factor for Nikon D3200 is 1.55
Crop factor for Nikon D3200 is 1.55
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If your screen (phone, tablet, or monitor) is not in diagonal, then the actual size of a sensor won't be shown correctly.