Nikon D500 vs Panasonic L1

Its time to take a deeper look at the Nikon D500 and Panasonic L1, both Advanced DSLR cameras by competitors Nikon and Panasonic. There is a large difference among the sensor resolutions of the D500 (21MP) and L1 (7MP) and the D500 (APS-C) and L1 (Four Thirds) offer totally different sensor measurements.

Photography Glossary

The D500 was brought out 8 years later than the L1 and that is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras feature the same body design (Mid-size SLR).

Before getting straight to a comprehensive comparison, here is a short synopsis of how the D500 scores vs the L1 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Nikon D500 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-L1. The entire galleries are available at Nikon D500 Gallery & Panasonic L1 Gallery.

For those who are going to lug around your camera regularly, you have to think about its weight and proportions. The Nikon D500 enjoys external dimensions of 147mm x 115mm x 81mm (5.8" x 4.5" x 3.2") having a weight of 860 grams (1.90 lbs) and the Panasonic L1 has measurements of 146mm x 87mm x 77mm (5.7" x 3.4" x 3.0") and a weight of 606 grams (1.34 lbs).

Look at the Nikon D500 and Panasonic L1 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have attached at that moment. Below is a front view scale comparison of the D500 and the L1.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the D500 and L1 is 56 and 65 respectively.

Usually, its difficult to see the contrast in sensor measurements purely by looking through a spec sheet. The graphic here will provide you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the D500 and L1.

Clearly, the 2 cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The D500 because of its larger sensor will make achieving bokeh easier and the Nikon D500 will provide you with extra detail having its extra 14 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop images a good deal more aggressively. The younger D500 will have an edge when it comes to sensor innovation.