Nikon D3100
Specs
Sensor info
Nikon D3100 comes with a
23.1 x 15.4 mm CMOS sensor, which has a diagonal of
27.76 mm (1.09") and a surface area of
355.74 mm².
If you want to know about the accuracy of these numbers,
click here.
Actual sensor size
Note: Actual size is set to screen → change »
This is the actual size of the D3100 sensor: 23.1 x 15.4 mm
The sensor has a surface area of 355.7 mm².
There are approx. 14,200,000 photosites (pixels) on this area.
Pixel pitch, which is a measure of the distance between pixels, is 5 µm.
Pixel pitch tells you the distance from the center of one pixel (photosite) to the center of the next.
Pixel or photosite area is 25 µm². The larger the photosite, the more light it can capture and the more information can be recorded.
Pixel density tells you how many million pixels fit or would fit in one square cm of the sensor. Nikon D3100 has a pixel density of 3.99 MP/cm².
These numbers are important in terms of assessing the overall quality of a digital camera. Generally, the bigger (and newer) the sensor, pixel pitch and photosite area, and the smaller the pixel density, the better the camera. If you want to see how D3100 compares to other cameras, click here.
Pixel or photosite area is 25 µm². The larger the photosite, the more light it can capture and the more information can be recorded.
Pixel density tells you how many million pixels fit or would fit in one square cm of the sensor. Nikon D3100 has a pixel density of 3.99 MP/cm².
These numbers are important in terms of assessing the overall quality of a digital camera. Generally, the bigger (and newer) the sensor, pixel pitch and photosite area, and the smaller the pixel density, the better the camera. If you want to see how D3100 compares to other cameras, click here.
Specifications
Brand: | Nikon |
Model: | D3100 |
Effective megapixels: | 14.20 |
Total megapixels: | 14.80 |
Sensor size: | 23.1 x 15.4 mm |
Sensor type: | CMOS |
Sensor resolution: | 4616 x 3077 |
Max. image resolution: | 4608 x 3072 |
Crop factor: | 1.56 |
Optical zoom: | |
Digital zoom: | No |
ISO: | Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200 (12800 with boost) |
RAW support: | |
Manual focus: | |
Normal focus range: | |
Macro focus range: | |
Focal length (35mm equiv.): | |
Aperture priority: | Yes |
Max aperture: | |
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.): | n/a |
Depth of field: | simulate → |
Metering: | Multi, Center-weighted, Average |
Exposure Compensation: | ±5 EV (in 1/3 EV steps) |
Shutter priority: | Yes |
Min. shutter speed: | 30 sec |
Max. shutter speed: | 1/4000 sec |
Built-in flash: | |
External flash: | |
Viewfinder: | Optical (pentamirror) |
White balance presets: | 12 |
Screen size: | 3" |
Screen resolution: | 230,000 dots |
Video capture: | |
Max. video resolution: | 1920x1080 (24p) |
Storage types: | SDHC, SDXC, Secure Digital |
USB: | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
HDMI: | |
Wireless: | |
GPS: | |
Battery: | Lithium-Ion EN-EL14 rechargeable battery |
Weight: | 505 g |
Dimensions: | 124 x 96 x 75 mm |
Year: | 2010 |
Compare D3100 with another camera
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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 |
Nikon D3100 diagonal:
w = 23.10 mm
h = 15.40 mm
h = 15.40 mm
Diagonal = √ | 23.10² + 15.40² | = 27.76 mm |
Surface area
Surface area is calculated by multiplying the width and the height of a sensor.
Width = 23.10 mm
Height = 15.40 mm
Surface area = 23.10 × 15.40 = 355.74 mm²
Width = 23.10 mm
Height = 15.40 mm
Surface area = 23.10 × 15.40 = 355.74 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 |
Nikon D3100 pixel pitch:
Sensor width = 23.10 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4616 pixels
Sensor resolution width = 4616 pixels
Pixel pitch = | 23.10 | × 1000 | = 5 µm |
4616 |
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 |
Nikon D3100 pixel area:
Pixel pitch = 5 µm
Pixel area = 5² = 25 µm²
Pixel area = 5² = 25 µm²
Pixel density
Pixel density can be calculated with the following formula:
You could also use this formula:
Pixel density = ( | sensor resolution width in pixels | )² / 1000000 |
sensor width in cm |
You could also use this formula:
Pixel density = | effective megapixels × 1000000 | / 10000 |
sensor surface area in mm² |
Nikon D3100 pixel density:
Sensor resolution width = 4616 pixels
Sensor width = 2.31 cm
Pixel density = (4616 / 2.31)² / 1000000 = 3.99 MP/cm²
Sensor width = 2.31 cm
Pixel density = (4616 / 2.31)² / 1000000 = 3.99 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 → |
|
Resolution horizontal: X × r
Resolution vertical: X
Nikon D3100 sensor resolution:
Sensor width = 23.10 mm
Sensor height = 15.40 mm
Effective megapixels = 14.20
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3077 × 1.5 = 4616
Resolution vertical: X = 3077
Sensor resolution = 4616 x 3077
Sensor height = 15.40 mm
Effective megapixels = 14.20
r = 23.10/15.40 = 1.5 |
|
Resolution vertical: X = 3077
Sensor resolution = 4616 x 3077
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 |
Nikon D3100 crop factor:
Sensor diagonal = 27.76 mm
Crop factor = | 43.27 | = 1.56 |
27.76 |
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).
Nikon D3100 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 D3100, take the aperture of the lens
you're using and multiply it with crop factor.
Crop factor for Nikon D3100 is 1.56
Crop factor for Nikon D3100 is 1.56
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.
If your screen (phone, tablet, or monitor) is not in diagonal, then the actual size of a sensor won't be shown correctly.