For those who haven't yet shot with a film camera or a full frame sensor digital camera, you might be in for a bit of a surprise on just how different this will change how you shoot. I wanted to write down some basic notes here for those who haven't experienced this yet, to perhaps get them a bit prepared.

First let me start off by saying that this isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it is different and will require some adjustments on your end.

Some changes you will notice in comparison to APS-C and smaller sensors-
-More isolated depth of field
-No more sweet spot advantage for your lenses
-Greater wide angle with same lenses for APS-C, or more field of view
-Less magnifying power of your lenses
-And...more resolution (both film and the FF camera(s) I have tried), which gives you a bit more cropping area.
-Physically, you will have a bigger and brighter viewfinder, with a subsequent better view.

These changes will result in thinking a bit differently about your final image outcome (calculations). However, FF basically increases the size of the photographers palate. Gives him/her more tools to be creative and options they didn't have previously.

Ultimately, I think it is best for a photographer to have 3 different sensor sizes in an arsenal than to rely on just one sensor size. A smaller sensor normally found in compacts (with the greatest DOF for any given f-stop of the 3 types in comparison to one another), an APS-C (mid range DOF for any given fstop), and a FF 35mm size sensor or film (the least DOF for any given f-stop). What this gives you is more power to control your images much greater than with just one sized sensor.

By knowing the characteristics of each, this will help those that previsualize the final outcome of an image prior to even taking a shot (a rule of Ansel Adams I highly recommend mastering), by giving them an even more broad range of visual outcomes to choose from.

For example F 2.8 at any given focal length for an 1 1/8" sensor (compact size) will have more DOF than with an APS-C sensor with the same settings. Same goes for APS-C over a full frame sensor. So you would use the appropriate sensor for the desired outcome. Its like having another tool box in the shed.

For any serious photographer, I would heartily recommend having all 3 sensor sizes. Then after you have some experience with each and know the limitations of all of them, you can correctly chose the sensor that gets the job done right :).

In the new age of DSLRS with much more gizmos and helpful tools in camera than ever, to me DOF is one of your greatest tools that should be fully understood and exploited.

Cheers,

Carl