A comprehensive guide explaining the fundamentals of pixels, resolution, and megapixels in digital imaging devices and cameras.
Digital imaging devices, especially digital cameras, often highlight the number of pixels or megapixels as a key feature. The following guide helps you understand the terms "pixel" and "megapixel."
Step 1
Understand a pixel. A digital image is constructed from many small dots or squares. These equally spaced dots are arranged in an array of rows and columns and are called pixels. The word "pixel" is derived from "pix" (short for "pictures") and "el" (for "element"). As you can imagine, the overall quality of an image depends on arranging a sufficient number of these dots closely together.
You may encounter the term "pixel" in many contexts, such as printed dots on a page, pixels on a display device, and pixels in a digital camera. In digital cameras, pixels are image sensor elements (such as CCDs), whereas in display units, they are small display elements.
Step 2
Check the pixel count or resolution. The total number of pixels available in a display or image is referred to as the resolution. In other words, resolution is the term used to specify the pixel count.
Step 3
Understand megapixels. If the pixel count or resolution is very low, the image quality will be poor. Typically, a large number of pixels—in multiples of 1,000,000—is required to represent an image clearly. Therefore, instead of counting individual pixels, the larger unit, "megapixels," is used to specify the total pixel count or resolution. One megapixel equals one million (1,000,000) pixels. Consequently, 3.2 megapixels means 3,200,000 pixels (i.e., 3.2 x 1,000,000), and five megapixels means there are five million pixels.
Step 4
Find hidden values of megapixels. Sometimes resolution is expressed as 800x600 (or 800 by 600). As mentioned earlier, pixels are arranged in rows and columns. Therefore, 800x600 means there are 800 pixels horizontally and 600 vertically (600 rows, each containing 800 pixels). You can find the total number of pixels by multiplying 800 by 600.
800 x 600 = 480,000 pixels. This is equal to 0.48 megapixels (480,000 / 1,000,000 = 0.48).
There are standard ways of representing resolution that are accepted worldwide. Some commonly used standards include EGA (640x350), VGA (640x480), SVGA (800x600), XGA (1024x768), SXGA (1,280x1,024), and UXGA (1,600x1,200). The resolution values for these standards are given in parentheses.
Understanding Pixels and Megapixels
A comprehensive guide explaining the fundamentals of pixels, resolution, and megapixels in digital imaging devices and cameras.
Digital imaging devices, especially digital cameras, often highlight the number of pixels or megapixels as a key feature. The following guide helps you understand the terms "pixel" and "megapixel."
Step 1
Understand a pixel. A digital image is constructed from many small dots or squares. These equally spaced dots are arranged in an array of rows and columns and are called pixels. The word "pixel" is derived from "pix" (short for "pictures") and "el" (for "element"). As you can imagine, the overall quality of an image depends on arranging a sufficient number of these dots closely together.
You may encounter the term "pixel" in many contexts, such as printed dots on a page, pixels on a display device, and pixels in a digital camera. In digital cameras, pixels are image sensor elements (such as CCDs), whereas in display units, they are small display elements.
Step 2
Check the pixel count or resolution. The total number of pixels available in a display or image is referred to as the resolution. In other words, resolution is the term used to specify the pixel count.
Step 3
Understand megapixels. If the pixel count or resolution is very low, the image quality will be poor. Typically, a large number of pixels—in multiples of 1,000,000—is required to represent an image clearly. Therefore, instead of counting individual pixels, the larger unit, "megapixels," is used to specify the total pixel count or resolution. One megapixel equals one million (1,000,000) pixels. Consequently, 3.2 megapixels means 3,200,000 pixels (i.e., 3.2 x 1,000,000), and five megapixels means there are five million pixels.
Step 4
Find hidden values of megapixels. Sometimes resolution is expressed as 800x600 (or 800 by 600). As mentioned earlier, pixels are arranged in rows and columns. Therefore, 800x600 means there are 800 pixels horizontally and 600 vertically (600 rows, each containing 800 pixels). You can find the total number of pixels by multiplying 800 by 600.
800 x 600 = 480,000 pixels. This is equal to 0.48 megapixels (480,000 / 1,000,000 = 0.48).
There are standard ways of representing resolution that are accepted worldwide. Some commonly used standards include EGA (640x350), VGA (640x480), SVGA (800x600), XGA (1024x768), SXGA (1,280x1,024), and UXGA (1,600x1,200). The resolution values for these standards are given in parentheses.
Understanding Pixels and Megapixels
By Howtodotips
A comprehensive guide explaining the fundamentals of pixels, resolution, and megapixels in digital imaging devices and cameras.