Olympus E-3 vs Panasonic FP3

Lets take a deeper look at the Olympus E-3 vs Panasonic FP3, former being a Advanced DSLR while the other is a Ultracompact by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a considerable gap among the image resolutions of the E-3 (10MP) and FP3 (14MP) and the E-3 (Four Thirds) and FP3 (1/2.3") provide totally different sensor size.

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The E-3 was introduced 22 months earlier than the FP3 making them a generation apart from one another. Each of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-3 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Panasonic FP3 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before diving straight to a complete comparison, here is a simple view of how the E-3 scores vs the FP3 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Here is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus E-3 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-FP3. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-3 Gallery & Panasonic FP3 Gallery.

For anyone who is intending to carry your camera regularly, you will want to factor its weight and volume. The Olympus E-3 offers outside dimensions of 142mm x 116mm x 75mm (5.6" x 4.6" x 3.0") along with a weight of 890 grams (1.96 lbs) while the Panasonic FP3 has sizing of 99mm x 59mm x 19mm (3.9" x 2.3" x 0.7") having a weight of 155 grams (0.34 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-3 vs Panasonic FP3 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you are employing at that moment. Underneath is a front view scale comparison of the E-3 compared to the FP3.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-3 and FP3 is 56 and 95 respectively.

Quite often, it is very difficult to envision the gap in sensor sizing purely by researching specs. The photograph underneath will help give you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-3 and FP3.

As you can plainly see, the two cameras feature different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The E-3 using its larger sensor will make shooting shallow depth of field less difficult and the Panasonic FP3 will provide you with extra detail using its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will enable you to crop images way more aggressively. The older E-3 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor technology.