Leica S2 vs Nikon D4s

Its time to examine more closely at the Leica S2 and Nikon D4s, both Pro DSLR digital cameras by competitors Leica and Nikon. There is a substantial difference between the resolutions of the S2 (38MP) and D4s (16MP) and the S2 (Medium format) and D4s (Full frame) feature different sensor size.

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The S2 was released 6 years prior to the D4s and that is quite a big difference as far as tech is concerned. Both of the cameras offer the identical body type (Large SLR).

Before delving straight into a complete comparison, below is a simple view of how the S2 grades vs the D4s for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a preview of the gallery images for Leica S2 & Nikon D4s. The complete galleries are provided at Leica S2 Gallery & Nikon D4s Gallery.

In case you're looking to lug around your camera often, you will need to factor in its weight and measurements. The Leica S2 offers exterior measurements of 160mm x 120mm x 81mm (6.3" x 4.7" x 3.2") accompanied by a weight of 1410 grams (3.11 lbs) and the Nikon D4s has proportions of 160mm x 157mm x 91mm (6.3" x 6.2" x 3.6") accompanied by a weight of 1350 grams (2.98 lbs).

Check out the Leica S2 and Nikon D4s in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you are using at the time. Following is the front view physical size comparison of the S2 versus the D4s.

Using size and weight, the portability score of the S2 and D4s is 52 and 50 respectively.

Oftentimes, it's hard to imagine the gap between sensor measurements purely by reading through a spec sheet. The photograph underneath will help give you a better sense of the sensor measurements in the S2 and D4s.

As you can see, each of these cameras offer different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The S2 due to its bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF easier and the Leica S2 will resolve more detail as a result of its extra 22 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also let you crop photographs a little more aggressively. The older S2 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor innovation.