bobbytan wrote:
You cannot compare technology from different generations. Yes, the m43 sensors of today are far superior to FF sensors of a few years ago ... but the FF sensors of today are even better. Let's face it, size matters, everything else being equal.
Yes, size matters ... but how much? Do you remember the infamous Luminous Landscape comparison between large prints of photos taken with a Hasselblad medium format digital and a Canon G10 point and shoot? The differences were imperceptible. The comparison caused an uproar.
I think it's important to know that an $800 M4:3 camera of today is equal to or even better than an $8,000 camera of a few years ago. It gives one perspective ... particularly for newcomers who arrive on the digital scene and simply assume that a pro body with more megapixels and high cost will give them the best results. As experienced users know, that's not necessarily true. More importantly, the Canon 1Ds Mark II ("old" technology) remains a great camera, though with limitations in the areas of noise control and dynamic range. Used appropriately, though, the results are usually stellar.
Even when compared to the $6,000 1Dx (which I owned for a time), my Olympus E-P5 fairs extremely well when comparing the output from each in large prints (pixel count is similar). A few years down the road ... maybe sooner than we think ... there will be an M4:3 camera that equals or exceeds the performance of the 1Dx!
Bottom line: I think the fact that an $800 M4:3 camera matches or even exceeds the 1Ds II's performance (PARTICULARLY in the realms of D/R and noise) is a valuable and helpful piece of information.
- Steve