Can you determine a phone camera’s sensor size from EXIF data like f-number and focal length?
Asked 8/28/2015
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I’m trying to figure out the physical sensor size of a phone camera from metadata such as f/2.6, focal length 3mm, max aperture 2.8, exposure time, and resolution. Is sensor size something I can calculate from that information alone, or do I need other data?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
10y ago
2 Answers
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No.
(I think - see below)
F-Stop and Aperture (these two are in fact the same thing) is/are a property of the lens.
Focal Length - again, a property of the lens.
Resolution Unit - I dunno exactly what you mean but most probably you mean „how many (mega)pixels are on the sensor”. „Sensor Size” is different from this because Sensor Size means how many millimeters (or any other appropriate length unit) and NOT how many pixels has the sensor in Length x Height.
Exposure time - totally unrelated. It represents the time which the „hole” (aperture) is open. In other words how much time the sensor receives light.
In fact, (especially for phones) the manufacturer should say in the specs sheet the dimensions of the sensor. However for smartphone cameras this spec isn't so important because anyway the dimensions are very tiny.
Originally by user952. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user952
10y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Not from those values alone.
f-number (f/2.6 or max aperture) and focal length are lens properties, not sensor-size measurements. Exposure time is unrelated to sensor dimensions, and image resolution tells you pixel count, not the physical width and height of the sensor.
So EXIF values like these do not directly reveal sensor size.
You may be able to estimate it if you also know either:
- the camera’s field of view and the true focal length, or
- the crop factor / 35mm-equivalent focal length.
With focal length plus field of view, sensor size can be calculated geometrically. In practice, though, the easiest and most reliable source is the manufacturer’s spec sheet, which often lists the sensor format or dimensions.
So the short answer is: no, not from f-stop, focal length, aperture, exposure time, and resolution alone.
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