Why I love 24MP.

Many people think Sony made a mistake in taking the A77 to 24MP. And, if it were up to me, I'd probably have stuck with 16MP and better low-light performance. But there is a bright side to 24MP. Not only greater detail, but also the ability to crop extensively.

Yes, I realize I'm not saying anything new. However, I'm posting because over the weekend I had two photo shoots for friends' kids and I realized how much I value the ability to crop. I'll admit that I'm not necessarily very good, but kids can be quite difficult. Often, many of the shots don't turn out too well. As a result, it can turn out that the close-ups that I took weren't as good as the full body shots. With 24MP, I can turn a full body shot into a close-up without a problem.

It's less of a problem with adults, to be sure. But it also helps in landscape photography: the shot you took may not be as strong as a significant crop would be. It's nice to have the flexibility to crop rather extensively.

So, while I understand people's complaints -- and, to some extent, I share them -- in the end, I am happy with 24MP.