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Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3

Portability
57
Imaging
56
Features
45
Overall
51
Sigma SD1 Merrill front
 
Sony Alpha NEX-F3 front
Portability
86
Imaging
57
Features
60
Overall
58

Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 Key Specs

Sigma SD1 Merrill
(Full Review)
  • 15MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • No Video
  • Sigma SA Mount
  • 790g - 146 x 113 x 80mm
  • Announced April 2012
  • Earlier Model is Sigma SD1
Sony NEX-F3
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 16000
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 314g - 117 x 67 x 42mm
  • Announced August 2012
  • Older Model is Sony NEX-C3
  • Replacement is Sony NEX-3N
Photography Glossary

Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 Overview

Let's look a bit more in depth at the Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by competitors Sigma and Sony. The sensor resolution of the SD1 Merrill (15MP) and the NEX-F3 (16MP) is relatively comparable and both cameras boast the same sensor measurements (APS-C).

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The SD1 Merrill was revealed 4 months prior to the NEX-F3 which means that they are both of a similar age. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Sigma SD1 Merrill being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Sony NEX-F3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before we go right into a more detailed comparison, here is a brief overview of how the SD1 Merrill matches up against the NEX-F3 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Sigma SD1 Merrill over the Sony NEX-F3

 SD1 Merrill NEX-F3 

Reasons to pick Sony NEX-F3 over the Sigma SD1 Merrill

 NEX-F3 SD1 Merrill 
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution920k460kCrisper screen (+460k dot)

Common features in the Sigma SD1 Merrill and Sony NEX-F3

 SD1 Merrill NEX-F3 
AnnouncedApril 2012August 2012Same age
Manually focus More accurate focus
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen measurements
Selfie screen Neither has selfie screen
Touch screen Missing Touch screen

Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 Physical Comparison

In case you're going to carry your camera regularly, you will want to think about its weight and volume. The Sigma SD1 Merrill has outer measurements of 146mm x 113mm x 80mm (5.7" x 4.4" x 3.1") along with a weight of 790 grams (1.74 lbs) while the Sony NEX-F3 has sizing of 117mm x 67mm x 42mm (4.6" x 2.6" x 1.7") and a weight of 314 grams (0.69 lbs).

Analyze the Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you select at that time. Here is a front view measurement comparison of the SD1 Merrill against the NEX-F3.

Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability score of the SD1 Merrill and NEX-F3 is 57 and 86 respectively.

Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 top view buttons comparison

Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, its difficult to see the gap in sensor sizing simply by checking out technical specs. The graphic below might provide you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the SD1 Merrill and NEX-F3.

As you can tell, the two cameras have the same sensor dimensions albeit not the same MP. You can count on the Sony NEX-F3 to provide greater detail because of its extra 1 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop photographs a bit more aggressively.

Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 sensor size comparison

Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 Screen and ViewFinder

Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sigma SD1 Merrill Portrait photography factors
Sony NEX-F3 Portrait photography factors
65
manual focus
megapixel count good (15MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW files
does not have liveview
74
has manual focus
good MP (16MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
saves RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Sigma SD1 Merrill as a Street photography camera
Sony NEX-F3 as a Street photography camera
57
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW files
weather proofing
no articulating screen
no image stabilization
76
has a tilting screen
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
saves RAW formats
lack of image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Sigma SD1 Merrill
Sports photography with Sony NEX-F3
61
megapixel count good (15 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
weather proofing
comes with phase detect auto focus
does not have liveview
no image stabilization
53
good MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
good battery (470 shots)
painfully slow continuous shooting (6.0 frames/s)
lack of image stabilization
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Sigma SD1 Merrill
Travel photography with Sony NEX-F3
54
weather proofing
megapixel count good (15MP)
doesn't have Time Lapse recording
display isn't selfie friendly
69
good battery (470 per charge)
good MP (16 megapixels)
flash built-in
does not have Time Lapse function
display is not selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Sigma SD1 Merrill
Landscape photography with Sony NEX-F3
63
manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Sigma SA mount)
nice screen size (3 inch)
megapixel count good (15 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW files
weather proofing
does not have liveview
no image stabilization
doesn't have Time Lapse recording
70
has manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Sony E mount)
nice screen size (3 inches)
good MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
saves RAW formats
good battery (470 per charge)
lack of image stabilization
does not have Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Sigma SD1 Merrill
Vlogging with Sony NEX-F3
9
no video shooting
27
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
display is not selfie friendly
lack of image stabilization
does not have mic jack
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Sigma SD1 Merrill vs Sony NEX-F3 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sigma SD1 Merrill and Sony NEX-F3
 Sigma SD1 MerrillSony Alpha NEX-F3
General Information
Brand Sigma Sony
Model type Sigma SD1 Merrill Sony Alpha NEX-F3
Category Advanced DSLR Entry-Level Mirrorless
Announced 2012-04-10 2012-08-16
Body design Mid-size SLR Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor Dual True II Bionz
Sensor type CMOS (Foveon X3) CMOS
Sensor size APS-C APS-C
Sensor dimensions 24 x 16mm 23.4 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 384.0mm² 365.0mm²
Sensor resolution 15 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio - 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4800 x 3200 4912 x 3264
Highest native ISO 6400 16000
Lowest native ISO 100 200
RAW support
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Total focus points - 25
Lens
Lens mount type Sigma SA Sony E
Available lenses 76 121
Crop factor 1.5 1.5
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Tilting
Display sizing 3" 3"
Resolution of display 460 thousand dot 920 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Display technology - TFT Xtra Fine LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentaprism) Electronic (optional)
Viewfinder coverage 96% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.64x -
Features
Slowest shutter speed - 30 seconds
Maximum shutter speed - 1/4000 seconds
Continuous shooting speed - 6.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance no built-in flash -
Flash modes no built-in flash Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in
Hot shoe
AEB
WB bracketing
Maximum flash sync - 1/160 seconds
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (60, 24 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution None 1920x1080
Video file format - MPEG-4, AVCHD
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 790g (1.74 lbs) 314g (0.69 lbs)
Physical dimensions 146 x 113 x 80mm (5.7" x 4.4" x 3.1") 117 x 67 x 42mm (4.6" x 2.6" x 1.7")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested 73
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 22.7
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 12.3
DXO Low light rating not tested 1114
Other
Battery life - 470 shots
Battery format - Battery Pack
Battery ID - NPFW50
Self timer Yes Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec 3 or 5 images)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I, UDMA compatible) SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots One One
Price at launch $2,339 $470