Canon SX120 IS vs Sigma DP3 Merrill

On this page, we will be matching up the Canon SX120 IS versus Sigma DP3 Merrill, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Large Sensor Compact by brands Canon and Sigma. There exists a substantial gap between the resolutions of the SX120 IS (10MP) and DP3 Merrill (15MP) and the SX120 IS (1/2.5") and DP3 Merrill (APS-C) have different sensor dimensions.

Sora from OpenAI releases its first ever music video

The SX120 IS was announced 4 years earlier than the DP3 Merrill and that is quite a big difference as far as technology is concerned. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Canon SX120 IS being a Compact camera and the Sigma DP3 Merrill being a Large Sensor Compact camera.

Before delving straight to a comprehensive comparison, here is a short introduction of how the SX120 IS matches up vs the DP3 Merrill in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a preview of the gallery photos for Canon PowerShot SX120 IS & Sigma DP3 Merrill. The whole galleries are provided at Canon SX120 IS Gallery & Sigma DP3 Merrill Gallery.

When you are intending to lug around your camera, you should think about its weight and size. The Canon SX120 IS provides external dimensions of 111mm x 71mm x 45mm (4.4" x 2.8" x 1.8") and a weight of 285 grams (0.63 lbs) while the Sigma DP3 Merrill has specifications of 122mm x 67mm x 59mm (4.8" x 2.6" x 2.3") having a weight of 330 grams (0.73 lbs).

See the Canon SX120 IS versus Sigma DP3 Merrill in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you have at that time. Below is a front view scale comparison of the SX120 IS compared to the DP3 Merrill.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SX120 IS and DP3 Merrill is 87 and 83 respectively.

Normally, it's difficult to picture the gap between sensor measurements just by looking at specifications. The visual underneath will help provide you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the SX120 IS and DP3 Merrill.

Plainly, both of these cameras have different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The SX120 IS with its tinier sensor is going to make getting bokeh more difficult and the Sigma DP3 Merrill will give greater detail with its extra 5MP. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop shots a bit more aggressively. The older SX120 IS is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor innovation.