Nikon S9500 vs Olympus E-510

In this write-up, we will be matching up the Nikon S9500 vs Olympus E-510, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by brands Nikon and Olympus. There is a significant difference between the sensor resolutions of the S9500 (18MP) and E-510 (10MP) and the S9500 (1/2.3") and E-510 (Four Thirds) enjoy different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The S9500 was released 5 years later than the E-510 and that is quite a sizable gap as far as tech is concerned. Each of these cameras offer different body type with the Nikon S9500 being a Compact camera and the Olympus E-510 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before delving straight into a thorough comparison, below is a simple summation of how the S9500 matches up versus the E-510 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

The following is a preview of the gallery images for Nikon Coolpix S9500 and Olympus E-510. The complete galleries are available at Nikon S9500 Gallery and Olympus E-510 Gallery.

For anyone who is aiming to carry your camera frequently, you're going to have to consider its weight and proportions. The Nikon S9500 provides external dimensions of 110mm x 60mm x 31mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.2") with a weight of 205 grams (0.45 lbs) whilst the Olympus E-510 has measurements of 136mm x 92mm x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") with a weight of 490 grams (1.08 lbs).

Check out the Nikon S9500 vs Olympus E-510 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you choose at that moment. Below is the front view scale comparison of the S9500 versus the E-510.

Considering size and weight, the portability score of the S9500 and E-510 is 92 and 69 respectively.

In many cases, its hard to imagine the contrast between sensor sizing simply by checking specs. The photograph underneath may give you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the S9500 and E-510.

As you can plainly see, the two cameras offer different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The S9500 featuring a tinier sensor is going to make getting shallower DOF harder and the Nikon S9500 will give more detail as a result of its extra 8 Megapixels. Higher resolution will make it easier to crop pictures a little more aggressively. The more modern S9500 provides a benefit in sensor tech.