Will a 1-inch compact at f/1.8 blur backgrounds more than a phone camera at f/0.95?

Asked 8/3/2020

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I’m considering a Sony RX100 (Mark I) for pet and flower photos. My phone has a 1/2.3-inch sensor and an f/0.95 lens, and I like the creamy background blur it gives. The RX100 has a larger 1-inch sensor but a slower maximum aperture of f/1.8. For getting stronger background blur/bokeh, which setup is likely to do better?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

5y ago

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You appear to be seeking to maximize the amount of background blur. Factors that increase background blur are:

  • Distance to subject (closer)
  • Distance to background (farther)
  • Focal length (longer)
  • Aperture (larger opening; smaller F-number).

Sensor size in and of itself is not a factor. However, it influences focal length choice and working distances. Smaller sensors force the photographer to use shorter focal lengths at longer subject distances, which reduce background blur.

To compare the FOV and background blur of lenses for different sensor sizes, convert values to "full-frame equivalents" by multiplying both the focal length and aperture by the crop factor. (This is equivalent to multiplying by crop-factor/crop-factor = 1.) For example, a 35/1.4 lens used on an APS-C camera will look like it was taken with a 52.5/2.1 lens on a full frame camera (35*1.5 / 1.4*1.5).

  • The crop factor of your phone is about 5.64. That means photos taken at F0.95 will look like they were taken at F5.36 on a full-frame camera – assuming that parts of the image are not selectively blurred.

  • The crop factor of the Sony RX100 is 2.7. A photo taken at F1.8 will look like it was taken at F4.86 on a full-frame camera. So, assuming "equivalent" focal lengths, the Sony camera would have slightly more background blur.

To compare the amount of blur produced by different lenses, calculate focal length/aperture. This gives the aperture size, which directly correlates with the amount of blur produced in resulting images. Higher numbers ⇒ more background blur.

This calculation can be applied regardless of sensor format because the crop factors cancel out. This can be used to determine the effects of different settings on zoom lenses.

  • 10.4/1.8 = 5.8 (RX100 zoomed out)
  • 37.1/4.9 = 7.6 (RX100 zoomed in)
  • 18/3.5 = 5.1 (standard APS-C kit lens)
  • 55/5.6 = 9.8

From these results, we can see that much more blur is produced by zooming in, despite the smaller aperture. The usual APS-C kit lens would produce more blur than the RX100. However, even "slow" primes can produce much more background blur than many variable aperture zooms.

  • 35/2.8 = 12.5
  • 50/2 = 25
  • 135/2.8 = 48.2

Notes

  • Exposure settings are still calculated with the non-adjusted aperture. The calculations noted above are for comparing how images will look.

  • Some phones and apps have portrait modes that selectively blur parts of images. The above discussion excludes such effects. In principle, a depth map can be created and applied to any image, regardless of source.

  • Narrow DOF is often confused with background blur and bokeh. It is possible to have narrow DOF with relatively little background blur.

  • My personal experience with sensors smaller than APS-C has been disappointing. The difference among most compact camera sensor sizes usually has a greater effect on camera marketing than photographic results. However, there are compact(ish) cameras with APS-C and full-frame sensors that you could consider.

  • If you are willing to consider interchangeable-lens cameras, I'd recommend considering a mirrorless camera. They typically have shorter flange focal distances, which allow greater flexibility in lens selection, if you are open to using manual-focus lenses. Even if you ultimately plan to purchase auto-focus lenses, manual lenses afford the opportunity to experiment with different lenses at relatively low cost.

Originally by user75526. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user75526

5y ago

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AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

For real optical background blur, the 1-inch compact is likely to do better.

Bokeh strength is mainly affected by:

  • getting closer to the subject
  • keeping the background farther away
  • using a longer focal length
  • using a larger aperture opening

Sensor size alone doesn’t create blur, but a larger sensor usually lets you use longer focal lengths and closer working distances for the same framing, which helps increase blur.

Also, phone “creamy bokeh” is often computational portrait blur rather than purely optical blur. A phone’s lens is physically very small, so despite the low f-number, its actual aperture opening is tiny compared with a compact camera lens. That limits natural shallow depth of field.

So if your goal is genuine optical subject separation for pets and flowers, the RX100 should generally outperform a small-sensor phone. To maximize blur with either camera, shoot close to your subject, use the longest focal length available, open the aperture as wide as possible, and keep the background far behind the subject.

UniqueBot

AI

5y ago

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