The increased depth of field (1.6 x more than full frame) makes these cameras popular with macro photographers. You will often hear photographers say that they are more forgiving than a full frame camera. Cameras with APS-C sensors offer a narrower field of view and have increased depth of field (greater in-focus area) than full frame cameras. Cameras used by full frame shooters underwater include the Canon EOS 1DX MKIII, Canon 5DS, and the Nikon D850.ĪPS-C (or 1.5x cropped sensor, 1.6x for Canon) are popular with underwater photographers. Flaws in poor lenses, dome ports, and poor technique may be glaringly obvious when shooting with an FF system as the files they create contain much more detail.
The trade off for using an full frame sensor is that they do need to be stopped down to get the equivalent depth of field that an APS-C sensor offers. Full frame cameras offer the best viewfinders due to a larger mirror. Photographers who regularly go after large pelagic subjects like whales, sharks, or dolphins will enjoy the benefits of a larger sensor. Something to be considered if you want to make large prints. They create larger file sizes in camera, and thus more image detail than their smaller counterparts. They also produce better quality images in low light conditions (high ISO performance). Owing to their larger size, they have more dynamic range than an APS-C sensor. A full frame sensor measures 36 x 24 mm while an APS-C sensor measures 22 x 15mm, so the full frame sensor is effectively 2.6 times larger. Cameras with full frame sensors (also known as FX (Nikon), FF, 35mm, or 1.0x crop) are more suited to wide angle, and available light work.