In my experience there is no specific number of mp which beats 35mm film. Some films were rated at nearly 200 linesmm, but some much less. Whether its an electro or a plastic disposable, both will be using 35mm film, which is in some ways equivalent to a fullframe digital sensor. A digital camera would have to be 156 megapixels to give you the same kind of detail as 35mm film. Section 2 of this paper summarizes the procedure used for the tests, section 3 gives some information on its implementation and sections 4 and 5 provide a summary of the objective and subjective results obtained. The spatial resolution of film in units equivalent to digital camera megapixels. Since there is a grain size associated with the asa rating of a 35mm film, i would think that a high enough resolution digital camera would eventually have more pixels per inch than grains per inch.
In the real world, even very serious 35mm photographers have a hard time beating 25megapixel equivalent quality you can use a fabulously expensive scanner at outrageous resolution to make much bigger files from 35mm, but all they give you is a larger view of the grain and the blur. The merits of digital versus film photography were considered by photographers and filmmakers in the early 21st century after consumer digital cameras became widely available. Digital sensors generally yield pretty low noise, so they may be able to show. Whats the equivalent resolution of a 35mm film slr. Dec 18, 2014 this gives a maximum possible digital camera equivalent of 38mp. The short answer is that a modern 24megapixel digital slr offers around the same level of resolution as a good film scanned in a modern minilab. You may choose to pick up a nikon d3300 an entry camera that checks off. The primary way that digital cameras achieve a 35mm equivalent view is through the use of camera lenses with wider focal lengths. It is estimated that 35mm film has a digital resolution equivalent to 4k. Megapixels equivalent to 35mm film open talk forum.
Feb 07, 2018 both cameras were shot using 35mm and 40mm equivalent lenses at iso 800. In the 21st century, photography came to be predominantly digital, but. In digital terms, whats is the theoretical resolution of 35mm film and 70mm. Image quality difference for sensor size really differs. Very good comparison of a digital and film photo showing what can be achieved straight from the camera. It compares 35mm film to a 3mp digital camera and sort of shockingly finds the digital superior in most every respect. Kodachrome resolving power were 50100 lpmm line pairs per millimeter for low contrast high contrast. In real world tests by henning serger this film on a mamiya 645 with the 80mm sekor has resolved 210 line pairs per mm which is greater than 24,000px across the film height. It has been employed in countless photographic applications including singlelens reflex slr cameras, rangefinder cameras film and digital, mirrorless interchangeablelens digital. In terms of optimal scanning resolution, if 6k is optimal for 35mm, then 12k is optimal for 5perf 65mm and almost 18k is optimal for 15perf 65mm imax. There was a tradeoff between sensitivity and grain size. A frame of 35mm film, scanned cheaply at a good photo lab to a cd, is about equal to the resolution of a 25mp dslr.
Film vs digital photography which is really better. A typical cinema projection of a distribution film print will offer no better resolution than an hd digital projection, probably less. There have been a few film versus digital articles here and there on. For example, the fujichrome velvia 35mm equivalent is 10 to 16 megapixels. The merits of digital versus film photography were considered by photographers and. We color, contrast and density adjust each and every frame or you have the option of no corrections. Pros dont shoot 35mm, they usually shoot 214 or 4x5.
Whats the maximum digital resolution of 35mm film reddit. All, digital and film, are properly exposed and perfectly shake free, and all look great. Since the lie factor factor from digital cameras is about two, youd need a digital camera of about 87 x 2 175 mp to see every last detail that makes onto film. So to truly beat film for resolution over a 35mm or full frame area you need at least a 36mp digital camera. A singlechip 87 mp digital camera still couldnt see details as fine as a piece of 35mm film. In reply to pentaxfun may 26, 2016 when i shot ektar 25 i was really impressed by the image quality. How many megapixels would it take to equal a 35mm film. This 70mm film negative has many times the area of a traditional 35mm film negative, allowing not only for more detail but much more pronounced depth of field.
For instance, the actual focal length of the zoom lens on the nikon a 900 compact digital camera is 4. But print size aside, its often easy to detect medium format images even when viewing on the web. Estimates of a photographs resolution taken with a 35 mm film camera vary. Heres a film vs digital comparison from 2000 that looks at how a print from one process compares with a print from the other. The resolution of digital cameras can be described in many different ways. Digital photography and digital cinematography have both advantages and disadvantages relative to still film and motion picture film photography. The contax cost more, but still loads less than anything in fullframe digital. I have some old 6x9 folders, they would generate a 75mp tp 150mp image. If you want to see the details of my research, including image comparisons for digital up to 200 megapixel equivalent and film, including 35mm, medium and large format up to 8x10, go to my image detail main page and read the other articles. Its sort of odd that simple comparisons like this arent a lot more common. According to imax, 35mm film has a digital equivalent of 6000 lines of horizontal resolution 6k, while 70mm film has the equivalent of 18,000 lines of digital resolution more like. Is traditional 35 mm film better quality than 4k digital. These films, with good lenses, are capable of resolving as much as 7000 pixels 3500 line pairs over the width of a 35mm frame about 5000 dots per inch. To start, the resolution of 35mm film cannot compete with modern digital sensors.
May 15, 2010 also, if your lens is not sharp, a high resolution sensor means nothing. So an uncompressed movie in dvd format is approx 60gb in size. When did the megapixels in digital cameras equal 35mm film. I am shopping for a digital to replace it and hopefully be able to use my af lenses. If we assume a good 35mm neg is equivalent to a 12mp raw image something like velvia 24mp, that would mean a good 6x4. With medium format 6x6 film you get 56 x 56 3,6 sq mm, which is 282 megapixel. At what megapixel would a digital camera be equivalent to 100 asa 35mm film. Specific articles on film versus digital camera spatial resolution include.
Mar 28, 2010 beside film resolution, it also the depends on the contrast level of exposure on the film emulsion that affect the resolving power, along with camera lenses quality, processing chemical, and digital conversion. Roughly, what are the megapixel equivalents of various. May 28, 2017 very good comparison of a digital and film photo showing what can be achieved straight from the camera. Look at the resolution spec for some films and lenses. When laypeople compare film to digital, they arent comparing film to digital.
If you buy the best 35mm film, the best camera and prime lens, mount it on the most stable platform you can find, focus with a loop, lock the mirror up and release the shutter with a cable release. The term 35mm equivalent focal length is a comparison of the field of view seen through a digital camera lens compared to the field of view produced by the older 35mm film cameras. In the attached photo i compare a 36mp scan of ektachrome film left versus a 24mp nikon d610 right picture of the same scene, with an zoom in of some detail of both pictures at the bottom. Ive heard it said that 35mm has more resolvable resolution than 2k digital cinema packages, yet not as much as 4k dcps. Nevertheless, i look at this issue from a position of practical photographer who deals a lot. Assuming iso 125, the standard speed of box camera 120620 verichrome film. Typical 35mm film projection is far far below 6k, a scientific test was done and concluded that the resolution of a release print is only going to get you the equivalent of a little under 2k. That is the equivalent of a 24840mm lens focal length on a 35mm camera.
In projection of print terms, 35mm is sub 4k, and dependent upon actual print and projector circumstances subhd. Of course you have to realize that 35mm is not the holy grail of film. Foveon digital cameras record all 3 colours per pixel, like film, but their sensors have. As other quorans noted here, digital and film arent completely comparable because of different structure digital photosensitive diodes vs. Interestingly this seems to be the sorts of figures that you get bandied about in the better forums discussions of the resolution of 35mm film. And that ignores the fact that most film projectors use quite old lenses that simply dont have comparable sharpness to much more modern lenses that. Beside film resolution, it also the depends on the contrast level of exposure on the film emulsion that affect the resolving power, along with camera lenses quality, processing chemical, and digital conversion. The grain of film is unmistakable, and in particular circumstances, could be considered obtrusive. What is the equivalent pixel resolution of 35mm film. Everything larger than 35mm and 6x9 or smaller is considered medium format. Comparing the image quality of film and digital petapixel. As you can see from this example, 35mm film and the 12 megapixel digital images are very comparable in resolution. The only real good test was performed in 2003, prior to our modern vision 3 stocks, which are absolutely better in every way.
I shoot film and digital, and the best results get blown up to around 16x20. Eventually, we will be able to see digital films in its native resolution. The darkroom specializes in all types of 35mm film developing. A canon 40d would match or exceed iso 200 and 400 35mm film. Instead there is a range of images you get from both film and digital. Mp resolution of 35mm film photographic science and. Both cameras were shot using 35mm and 40mm equivalent lenses at iso 800. What is the equivalent resolution of a 35mm film photography. The term resolution is often considered equivalent to pixel count in digital imaging, though international standards in the digital camera field specify it should instead be called number of total pixels in relation to image sensors, and as number of recorded pixels. Roughly, what are the megapixel equivalents of various different 35mm films. The digital images are in camera jpegs and the film is just a straight scan with very little post processing at all. Aug 01, 2016 unlike digital, there is always a loss when measuring film resolution thanks to that issue, especially when it comes to negative first generation vs positive projected second generation. It is important to note that the choice of film also plays a major roll in the resolution of the final images. Though, some early digital films were filmed in 4k.
A line is actually one complete lightdark cycle, so you have to allow for at least 2 pixels per line width. Also, if your lens is not sharp, a high resolution sensor means nothing. Nov 23, 2006 granted you asked a question about print film, but with slide film such as 35mm fujichrome velvia iso 50, the megapixel equivalent is somewhere around 1016 megapixels. The better digital cameras are also starting to exceed the quality of most zooms and even some prime lenses. If your scanner peaks at 3500 to 4000dpi as many do your maximum equivalent is 19mp to 21mp. Dec 26, 2018 though, some early digital films were filmed in 4k. Now the film used is adox cms 20, a high resolution film capable of resolving 800 line pairs per mm.
With todays technology, in a given format size, a digital sensor is far much better than film in terms of noise and resolution. The amount of visual data preserved on film is about 20 megapixels, if processed on a good scanner. Since the lie factor factor from digital cameras is about two, youd need. Granted you asked a question about print film, but with slide film such as 35mm fujichrome velvia iso 50, the megapixel equivalent is somewhere around 1016 megapixels. Mar 26, 2020 to start, the resolution of 35mm film cannot compete with modern digital sensors. Lets say that you want a modern digital camera with resolution, dynamic range, and grain equivalent to iso 100 film. I shot the digital first then transferred the exposure settings over to the leica and took the same shot i was quite surprised with the difference in.
With regard to resolution equivilence, 35mm will empirically yeild the equivilent of 24mp, and theoretically 82mp. There is more information to be extracted even at this fine resolution, but the. Nowadays high resolution sensors for digital cameras are cheap, but high resolution lenses still expensive. Ive heard anything from 12 to 40 megapixels mentioned for 35mm velvia, and 120 for medium format. Why medium format is so gorgeous its about more than. Typical cinematic 70mm prints have resolution comparable, yet superior to 4k dcps, and imax 70mm prints have resolution around the 6k ballpark. Based upon the above pixel density, a mediumformat film image can record an equivalent resolution of approximately 83 million pixels in the case of a 60 x 60 mm frame, to 125 million pixels in the case of a 60 x 90 mm frame. Apr 06, 2010 i am shopping for a digital to replace it and hopefully be able to use my af lenses. To me the average 35mm film frame is equivalent to about 6 mp but film can be as good as 12 mp or more depending on the equipment. From my point of view, and speaking about when does digital resolution equal 35mm, i spent a long time with nikon film slrs fm, fe, fe2 and, even if these were soooooooo good in use and produced soooooooo good pictures, i have to say that pictures produced with my f717 are far ahead of what i got with my nikon.
Todays highend fullframe digital cameras have 35mm sensors which is the size of a conventional 35mm film. Mpeg 2 compression takes that down to between 4 to 9 gigabytes, which ensures the film will fit snuggly on a dvd 35mm film, on the other hand, is considered to be around 4096x4096 resolution, so using the same formula. If 35mm film was measured in megapixels how many would it. The results are very impressive and from our comparisons we think scanned color slide film has a digital equivalent resolution of between 12mp and 24mp depending on what aspect you look at 12mp. He did an experiment on lens resolution on 35mm film. I have owned full frame digital nikon and now an xt2 but have always missed what i got from film back in the day so have just gone back to an f5 mainly for black and white. So the 75 linesmm becomes 150 pixelsmm, which means a full 35mm frame would have 5400 x 3600 pixels 19.
1334 577 638 757 1147 1393 1390 187 799 801 439 270 1430 221 478 1307 531 359 1367 507 550 137 356 1436 609 978 343 1610 179 33 1428 97 843 650 1356 210 495 1227 71