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Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5

Portability
57
Imaging
54
Features
65
Overall
58
Canon EOS 50D front
 
Olympus PEN E-PL5 front
Portability
88
Imaging
52
Features
72
Overall
60

Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5 Key Specs

Canon 50D
(Full Review)
  • 15MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 3200 (Boost to 12800)
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • No Video
  • Canon EF/EF-S Mount
  • 822g - 146 x 108 x 74mm
  • Revealed October 2008
  • Older Model is Canon 40D
  • Newer Model is Canon 60D
Olympus E-PL5
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 325g - 111 x 64 x 38mm
  • Released September 2012
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Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5 Overview

The following is a comprehensive review of the Canon 50D and Olympus E-PL5, one is a Advanced DSLR and the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by rivals Canon and Olympus. The resolution of the 50D (15MP) and the E-PL5 (16MP) is fairly close but the 50D (APS-C) and E-PL5 (Four Thirds) enjoy different sensor sizing.

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The 50D was revealed 4 years earlier than the E-PL5 which is a fairly serious gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Canon 50D being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus E-PL5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before delving through a comprehensive comparison, below is a quick synopsis of how the 50D grades versus the E-PL5 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Canon 50D over the Olympus E-PL5

 50D E-PL5 
Display resolution920k460kClearer display (+460k dot)

Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL5 over the Canon 50D

 E-PL5 50D 
ReleasedSeptember 2012October 2008Newer by 47 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Selfie screen Easy selfies
Touch display Easily navigate

Common features in the Canon 50D and Olympus E-PL5

 50D E-PL5 
Manually focus More accurate focus
Display dimension3"3"Identical display measurement

Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5 Physical Comparison

If you are looking to travel with your camera often, you will need to think about its weight and proportions. The Canon 50D comes with physical dimensions of 146mm x 108mm x 74mm (5.7" x 4.3" x 2.9") along with a weight of 822 grams (1.81 lbs) whilst the Olympus E-PL5 has measurements of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") and a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs).

Check the Canon 50D and Olympus E-PL5 in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you use at that moment. Underneath is the front view overall size comparison of the 50D and the E-PL5.

Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5 size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the 50D and E-PL5 is 57 and 88 respectively.

Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5 top view buttons comparison

Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5 Sensor Comparison

Often, it can be difficult to visualize the contrast in sensor dimensions only by researching technical specs. The pic below will offer you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the 50D and E-PL5.

As you have seen, each of the cameras posses different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The 50D with its larger sensor is going to make achieving bokeh simpler and the Olympus E-PL5 will render extra detail because of its extra 1 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also enable you to crop pics somewhat more aggressively. The more aged 50D will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor technology.

Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5 sensor size comparison

Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5 Screen and ViewFinder

Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Canon 50D Portrait photography factors
Olympus E-PL5 Portrait photography factors
72
manual focus
decent MP (15 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
provides face detect autofocus
exports RAW formats
71
focusing manually
MP count decent (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes face detect focusing
exports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Canon 50D
Street photography with Olympus E-PL5
57
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
environment proof
no moving screen
lack of image stabilization
85
has a tilting screen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
includes touch focus
above average high ISO (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Canon 50D Sports photography advice
Olympus E-PL5 Sports photography advice
62
maximum shutter speed is high (1/8,000s)
decent MP (15 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
environment proof
has phase detect autofocus
lack of image stabilization
not so great battery power (800 CIPA)
66
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes tracking focus
lacks phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Canon 50D Travel photography highlights
Olympus E-PL5 Travel photography highlights
57
environment proof
decent MP (15 megapixels)
flash built-in
not so great battery power (800 CIPA)
doesn't feature selfie friendly screen
75
includes touch focus
MP count decent (16MP)
selfie friendly screen
missing Time Lapse mode
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Landscape Comparison

Canon 50D Landscape photography factors
Olympus E-PL5 Landscape photography factors
66
manual focus
swap lenses (Canon EF/EF-S mount)
screen size is good (3")
decent MP (15MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
environment proof
lack of image stabilization
not so great battery power (800 per charge)
74
focusing manually
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
nice screen size (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count decent (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
above average high ISO (25,600)
exports RAW formats
missing Time Lapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Canon 50D
Vlogging with Olympus E-PL5
9
no video recording
78
selfie friendly screen
touchscreen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
includes face detect focusing
high res video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
missing mic socket
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Canon 50D vs Olympus E-PL5 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Canon 50D and Olympus E-PL5
 Canon EOS 50DOlympus PEN E-PL5
General Information
Company Canon Olympus
Model type Canon EOS 50D Olympus PEN E-PL5
Category Advanced DSLR Entry-Level Mirrorless
Revealed 2008-10-30 2012-09-17
Physical type Mid-size SLR Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor Digic 4 -
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size APS-C Four Thirds
Sensor dimensions 22.3 x 14.9mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor area 332.3mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 15MP 16MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 4:3
Full resolution 4752 x 3168 4608 x 3456
Max native ISO 3200 25600
Max boosted ISO 12800 -
Minimum native ISO 100 200
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Autofocus touch
Continuous autofocus
Single autofocus
Tracking autofocus
Selective autofocus
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Autofocus live view
Face detection focus
Contract detection focus
Phase detection focus
Total focus points 9 35
Lens
Lens support Canon EF/EF-S Micro Four Thirds
Available lenses 326 107
Focal length multiplier 1.6 2.1
Screen
Type of screen Fixed Type Tilting
Screen diagonal 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 920 thousand dots 460 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen technology TFT liquid-crystal color LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentaprism) Electronic (optional)
Viewfinder coverage 95% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.6x -
Features
Lowest shutter speed 30 seconds 60 seconds
Highest shutter speed 1/8000 seconds 1/4000 seconds
Continuous shooting rate 6.3 frames per second 8.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 13.00 m (ISO 100) 7.00 m (bundled FL-LM1)
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-eye Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels)
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/250 seconds 1/250 seconds
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution None 1920x1080
Video data format - MPEG-4, H.264, Motion JPEG
Mic port
Headphone port
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
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 822g (1.81 pounds) 325g (0.72 pounds)
Dimensions 146 x 108 x 74mm (5.7" x 4.3" x 2.9") 111 x 64 x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 63 72
DXO Color Depth rating 21.8 22.8
DXO Dynamic range rating 11.4 12.3
DXO Low light rating 696 889
Other
Battery life 800 photos 360 photos
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BP-511A BLS-5
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 12 sec)
Time lapse feature
Storage type Compact Flash (Type I or II), UDMA SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots One One
Pricing at launch $996 $400