Megapixels: The Myth We're All Buying Into
In a world obsessed with the idea that bigger is always better, we've been led to believe that stuffing our cameras with more megapixels is like giving them a superpower. But let's take a step back and inject a bit of reality into this pixel-packed fantasy.
First off, camera resolution is basically how many dots (a.k.a. pixels) your camera can cram into a picture. More dots mean more detail, right? Well, yes and no. Here's the thing: while more pixels can capture more detail, there's a catch that's often glossed over faster than a squirrel on a skateboard – the viewing distance.
The Viewing Distance Dilemma
Imagine looking at a billboard. From the street, it looks crisp. But get up close, and you'll see it's as pixelated as a 90s video game. That's because the effectiveness of those pixels depends on how far away you are when you're eyeballing the image. The further away you are, the less your eyes care about the number of pixels. They're too busy admiring the view or watching out for rogue squirrels.
Obsessing over megapixels is like trying to use a sledgehammer to crack a nut – overkill. High-resolution images are data hogs, gobbling up storage and processing power faster than you can say "But do I really need this?" Plus, it diverts attention from what genuinely matters in photography: composition, lighting, and that indefinable mojo that makes a photo pop.
Let's not forget, too many pixels can be a bit of a double-edged sword. Sure, they can make your images look sharper than a porcupine at a balloon party, but only up to a point. Beyond that, you're just collecting digital dust.
Cropping: well, that changes things a bit
If one thing is advantageous to have a huge file is for cropping. But then again, is kind of a double side sword. Yes you can crop all you want, but why composing your image properly if you can always clip away and declutter? It doesn't always work like that, does it? So, in reality, having tons of resolution really helps when printing really big, and when doing a lot of cropping, but having a restricted amount of megapixels forces you to, as Professor Slughorn from Harry Potter would say: “use them well”.
So, what's the moral of the story? It's simple: more megapixels don't necessarily mean better photos. It's all about how you use what you've got.
There is an excellent article from Fstoppers called How many megapixels you need to print a billboard. with a much more technical and detailed information, really worth a read.
Happy Shooting!