Digital BW, The Print

> From: claudej1@... [mailto:claudej1@...]
>
> Being a vertically integrated company, Canon is setting the world
> on fire
> right now and I can't image needing more resolution than 16.7
> native Megapixels
> in a file, since that can make a 12x18 print at 300 ppi with no
> interpolation. <snip> That is a practical conderation,
> even for those who only count the 8.4 Megapixels of the green  channel as
> providing "true resolution" whatever that means.

They're talking about the fact that, in order to avoid color moire, a Bayer
pattern sensor needs a diffuser in front of it that is about twice as strong
as would be needed by a true RGB sensor. And Canon is known not to skimp in
that area, the way Kodak did. So by that standard, 8.4MP is probably a
better metric of sharpness, if you want to compare it, say, to what a
imaginary large Foveon chip could do.

In other words, with a Canon sensor, you'll never get a _totally_ sharp
edge, where one pixel is black and an adjacent pixel is white, no matter
what piece of glass you put in front of it.

Not that I'm complaining. I love my Canon gear, and understand that pure
sharpness is only one small factor in making good art. I think Canon made
the right choice when it put a proper diffuser in front of the sensor.

--

Ciao,               Paul D. DeRocco
Paul                mailto:pderocco@...