Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ1 vs. Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ100

Comparison

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Lumix DMC-FZ1 image
vs
Lumix DMC-FZ100 image
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ100
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Megapixels
2.00
14.10
Max. image resolution
1600 x 1200
4320 x 3240

Sensor

Sensor type
CCD
CMOS
Sensor size
1/3.2" (~ 4.5 x 3.37 mm)
1/2.33" (~ 6.08 x 4.56 mm)
Sensor resolution
1637 x 1222
4330 x 3256
Diagonal
5.62 mm
7.60 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 : 1.83
(ratio)
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ100
Surface area:
15.17 mm² vs 27.72 mm²
Difference: 12.55 mm² (83%)
FZ100 sensor is approx. 1.83x bigger than FZ1 sensor.
Note: You are comparing sensors of very different generations. There is a gap of 8 years between Panasonic FZ1 (2002) and Panasonic FZ100 (2010). 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
2.75 µm
1.4 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: 1.35 µm (96%)
Pixel pitch of FZ1 is approx. 96% higher than pixel pitch of FZ100.
Pixel area
7.56 µm²
1.96 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: 5.6 µm² (286%)
A pixel on Panasonic FZ1 sensor is approx. 286% bigger than a pixel on Panasonic FZ100.
Pixel density
13.23 MP/cm²
50.72 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: 37.49 µm (283%)
Panasonic FZ100 has approx. 283% higher pixel density than Panasonic FZ1.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Panasonic FZ1
Panasonic FZ100
Crop factor
7.7
5.69
Total megapixels
2.10
15.10
Effective megapixels
2.00
14.10
Optical zoom
12x
24x
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 50, 100, 200, 400
Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200 - 6400
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
30 cm
30 cm
Macro focus range
3 cm
1 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
35 - 420 mm
25 - 600 mm
Aperture priority
No
Yes
Max. aperture
f2.8 - f2.8
f2.8 - f5.2
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f21.6 - f21.6
f15.9 - f29.6
Metering
Matrix, Multi-segment
Centre weighted, Intelligent Multiple, Spot
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
No
Yes
Min. shutter speed
8 sec
60 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/2000 sec
1/2000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Electronic
Electronic
White balance presets
7
5
Screen size
1.5"
3"
Screen resolution
114,000 dots
460,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
MultiMedia, Secure Digital
SDHC, SDXC, Secure Digital
USB
USB 1.0
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
Lithium-Ion rechargeable
Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery
Weight
414 g
496 g
Dimensions
125 x 70 x 83 mm
124.3 x 81.2 x 95.2 mm
Year
2002
2010




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Diagonal

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

Panasonic FZ1 diagonal

The diagonal of FZ1 sensor is not 1/3.2 or 0.31" (7.9 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 5.62 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 4.50 mm
h = 3.37 mm
Diagonal = √  4.50² + 3.37²   = 5.62 mm

Panasonic FZ100 diagonal

The diagonal of FZ100 sensor is not 1/2.33 or 0.43" (10.9 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 7.6 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 6.08 mm
h = 4.56 mm
Diagonal = √  6.08² + 4.56²   = 7.60 mm


Surface area

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

FZ1 sensor area

Width = 4.50 mm
Height = 3.37 mm

Surface area = 4.50 × 3.37 = 15.17 mm²

FZ100 sensor area

Width = 6.08 mm
Height = 4.56 mm

Surface area = 6.08 × 4.56 = 27.72 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

FZ1 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 4.50 mm
Sensor resolution width = 1637 pixels
Pixel pitch =   4.50  × 1000  = 2.75 µm
1637

FZ100 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 6.08 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4330 pixels
Pixel pitch =   6.08  × 1000  = 1.4 µm
4330


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

FZ1 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 2.75 µm

Pixel area = 2.75² = 7.56 µm²

FZ100 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.4 µm

Pixel area = 1.4² = 1.96 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

FZ1 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 1637 pixels
Sensor width = 0.45 cm

Pixel density = (1637 / 0.45)² / 1000000 = 13.23 MP/cm²

FZ100 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4330 pixels
Sensor width = 0.608 cm

Pixel density = (4330 / 0.608)² / 1000000 = 50.72 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

FZ1 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 4.50 mm
Sensor height = 3.37 mm
Effective megapixels = 2.00
r = 4.50/3.37 = 1.34
X = √  2.00 × 1000000  = 1222
1.34
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 1222 × 1.34 = 1637
Resolution vertical: X = 1222

Sensor resolution = 1637 x 1222

FZ100 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 6.08 mm
Sensor height = 4.56 mm
Effective megapixels = 14.10
r = 6.08/4.56 = 1.33
X = √  14.10 × 1000000  = 3256
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3256 × 1.33 = 4330
Resolution vertical: X = 3256

Sensor resolution = 4330 x 3256


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


FZ1 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 5.62 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 7.7
5.62

FZ100 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 7.60 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 5.69
7.60

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).

FZ1 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 7.7
Aperture = f2.8 - f2.8

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f2.8) × 7.7 = f21.6 - f21.6

FZ100 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 5.69
Aperture = f2.8 - f5.2

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f5.2) × 5.69 = f15.9 - f29.6

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