Why Medium Format?

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Most photography is shot on full-frame or APS-C cameras. This is because Medium Format is slower, heavier, offer fewer lens options, huge file sizes, and a steep price tag which prevent many from using it.

However, with the right expertise you can get around this. Below I explain the differences and ultimately why I still choose to shoot in this format.

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Sensor Size

A typical full-frame sensor is 36x24mm, the sensor I use is 44x33mm which is about 67% larger. This allows more light and depth to be captured, resulting in a low noise output especially for low light events like concerts.

The images below compare the various sensor sizes and resolution available today.

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Zoom out?

I’m often asked: “Can’t you just step back or zoom out to get the same picture?”

Yes, but the final result isn’t the same…

Medium format allows you to use more zoomed in lenses whilst still capturing a wider field of view giving you that pleasing compression without the distortion. This keeps faces more natural, avoids edge stretching looking more real to life.

On smaller sensors such as our smartphones, using the ultra wide camera will introduce distortion, especially near the corners. Try it now and compare your 0.6x camera image with a 1x camera image once stepping back. Notice the edges distort less?

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Framing

Below, the first image shows the field of view from a full-frame sensor. The second shows the full composition from medium format.

This shows how large the sensor is, with less distortion, no stepping back, providing a stronger sense of scale.

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Resolution

Medium format gives you more resolution. For example, I capture 102mp which is far larger than the average 33mp for full-frame cameras.

This means you can:

Crop freely without losing much detail
Get sharpness suitable for large prints
Get files that are future proofed

See below for a cropped in comparison of the difference

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Below is a video showing a zoom-out from one of these full-res files.

This image was captured wide open, where most lenses are typically at their softest.

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Dynamic Range

Medium format allows you to recover detail from deep shadows without introducing noise, losing contrast, or needing heavy editing.

Below shows a RAW file straight with no edits, moving the slider to the left increases the brightness by 32x (+5 exposure) without much loss in quality.

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Discover the depth and detail of medium format photography.
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