Nikon Z30 vs. Sony Alpha a6000

Comparison

change cameras »
Z30 image
vs
Alpha a6000 image
Nikon Z30 Sony Alpha a6000
check price » check price »
Megapixels
20.90
24.30
Max. image resolution
5568 x 3712
6000 x 4000

Sensor

Sensor type
CMOS
CMOS
Sensor size
23.5 x 15.7 mm
23.5 x 15.6 mm
Sensor resolution
5600 x 3733
6058 x 4012
Diagonal
28.26 mm
28.21 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
1.01 : 1
(ratio)
Nikon Z30 Sony Alpha a6000
Surface area:
368.95 mm² vs 366.60 mm²
Difference: 2.35 mm² (0.6%)
Z30 sensor is slightly bigger than Alpha a6000 sensor (only 0.6% difference).
Note: You are comparing sensors of very different generations. There is a gap of 8 years between Nikon Z30 (2022 ) and Sony Alpha a6000 (2014). Eight years is a lot of time in terms of technology, meaning newer sensors are overall much more efficient than the older ones.
Pixel pitch
4.2 µm
3.88 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: 0.32 µm (8%)
Pixel pitch of Z30 is approx. 8% higher than pixel pitch of Alpha a6000.
Pixel area
17.64 µm²
15.05 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: 2.59 µm² (17%)
A pixel on Nikon Z30 sensor is approx. 17% bigger than a pixel on Sony Alpha a6000.
Pixel density
5.68 MP/cm²
6.65 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: 0.97 µm (17%)
Sony Alpha a6000 has approx. 17% higher pixel density than Nikon Z30.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Nikon Z30
Sony Alpha a6000
Crop factor
1.53
1.53
Total megapixels
21.51
24.70
Effective megapixels
20.90
24.30
Optical zoom
Digital zoom
No
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 100-51200 (expandable to 204800)
Auto, 100-25600
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, Highlight-weighted, Spot
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Exposure compensation
±5 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
1/4000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
None
Electronic
White balance presets
6
10
Screen size
3"
3"
Screen resolution
1,036,800 dots
921,600 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
3840x2160 (30p/​25p/​24p)
1920x1080 (60p/60i/24p)
Storage types
SD/SDHC/SDXC
SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
USB
USB 3.0 (5 GBit/sec)
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
EN-EL25 lithium-ion battery
NP-FW50 lithium-ion battery
Weight
350 g
344 g
Dimensions
128 x 73.5 x 59.5 mm
120 x 67 x 45 mm
Year
2022
2014




Choose cameras to compare

vs

Diagonal

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

Nikon Z30 diagonal

w = 23.50 mm
h = 15.70 mm
Diagonal =  23.50² + 15.70²   = 28.26 mm

Sony Alpha a6000 diagonal

w = 23.50 mm
h = 15.60 mm
Diagonal =  23.50² + 15.60²   = 28.21 mm


Surface area

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

Z30 sensor area

Width = 23.50 mm
Height = 15.70 mm

Surface area = 23.50 × 15.70 = 368.95 mm²

Alpha a6000 sensor area

Width = 23.50 mm
Height = 15.60 mm

Surface area = 23.50 × 15.60 = 366.60 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

Z30 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 23.50 mm
Sensor resolution width = 5600 pixels
Pixel pitch =   23.50  × 1000  = 4.2 µm
5600

Alpha a6000 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 23.50 mm
Sensor resolution width = 6058 pixels
Pixel pitch =   23.50  × 1000  = 3.88 µm
6058


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

Z30 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 4.2 µm

Pixel area = 4.2² = 17.64 µm²

Alpha a6000 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 3.88 µm

Pixel area = 3.88² = 15.05 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

Z30 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 5600 pixels
Sensor width = 2.35 cm

Pixel density = (5600 / 2.35)² / 1000000 = 5.68 MP/cm²

Alpha a6000 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 6058 pixels
Sensor width = 2.35 cm

Pixel density = (6058 / 2.35)² / 1000000 = 6.65 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

Z30 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 23.50 mm
Sensor height = 15.70 mm
Effective megapixels = 20.90
r = 23.50/15.70 = 1.5
X =  20.90 × 1000000  = 3733
1.5
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3733 × 1.5 = 5600
Resolution vertical: X = 3733

Sensor resolution = 5600 x 3733

Alpha a6000 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 23.50 mm
Sensor height = 15.60 mm
Effective megapixels = 24.30
r = 23.50/15.60 = 1.51
X =  24.30 × 1000000  = 4012
1.51
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 4012 × 1.51 = 6058
Resolution vertical: X = 4012

Sensor resolution = 6058 x 4012


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


Z30 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 28.26 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 1.53
28.26

Alpha a6000 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 28.21 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 1.53
28.21

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).

Z30 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 Z30, take the aperture of the lens you're using and multiply it with crop factor.

Crop factor for Nikon Z30 is 1.53

Alpha a6000 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 a6000, take the aperture of the lens you're using and multiply it with crop factor.

Crop factor for Sony Alpha a6000 is 1.53

Enter your screen size (diagonal)

My screen size is  inches



Actual size is currently adjusted to screen.

If your screen (phone, tablet, or monitor) is not in diagonal, then the actual size of a sensor won't be shown correctly.