Many people buying their first DSLR, especially people looking to buy a Nikon DSLR, often get confused with what a DX and FX sensor is, what the different between both of them is and which one should they buy. Answer to this riddle is actually quite a simple one. DX stands for Nikon’s cropped sensor and FX stands for the full frame sensor which is equivalent to a 35mm film. Click on the link below to read in detail about full frame and cropped sensors.
Surprisingly, until 2007 Nikon was only producing DX sensor cameras. They first introduced a smaller sensor DSLR with Nikon D1 which at that time was quite a costly affair at over $5000 dollars. It was about 2/3 of the size of the 35mm film and it only had 2.66 megapixels yet it gained popularity in a matter of time due to which Nikon eventually came up with DX sensor. It is about 24x16mm in size and is still being widely used in all entry-level (Nikon D3000/D5000), semi-professional (Nikon D90) and even professional (Nikon D300s) cameras. Megapixels went up significantly with the latest DX sensors having 12.3 effective megapixels (4,288 x 2,848 resolution), which means the pixel size has also equally decreased, resulting in higher pixel density. Finally after realizing that cramming up more and more pixels in a small sensor was really affecting low light photography, Nikon increased the size of their sensors to 36x24mm with a 4256×2832 resolution and launched Nikon D3 in 2007. It was the first Nikon DSLR that had a 35mm equivalent digital sensor.
If you are confused that which one you should buy, then you must take a look at the advantages and disadvantages of both DX and FX sensor.
1. DX sensor DSLRs are way cheaper than the ones equipped with FX sensors.
2. Regular lenses for film and full-frame sensors are way more costly than the lenses for DX sensors.
3. Cameras with DX sensors are smaller and lighter than cameras with FX sensors.
4. DX sensors have a way smaller number of megapixels and image resolution than FX sensors.
5. Due to smaller numbers of megapixels, DX sensors produce a lot of noise in pictures at a higher ISO which FX sensors don’t because they have a larger number of megapixels.
5. If you have a DX sensor camera and decide to go for FX, you would have to buy a whole new set of lenses. DX lenses can work on FX sensors, but only at half the resolution.
If you are buying your first DSLR, then my suggestion would be to go with DX. FX sensors are definitely gaining a lot of popularity and more full frame cameras are being introduced in the market but they are still a lot more costlier than DX sensors. As an amateur, you should start with DX and move on to FX when you are ready to shed more money for your 2nd DSLR. I have myself been using DX sensors for quite a long time now and have not yet felt the need to move on to a larger sensor yet. Many Nikon semi-professional cameras use crop sensors and serve their purpose very well.
