Olympus E-3 vs Panasonic LZ20

Below, we will be matching up the Olympus E-3 versus Panasonic LZ20, former is a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a large gap among the resolutions of the E-3 (10MP) and LZ20 (16MP) and the E-3 (Four Thirds) and LZ20 (1/2.3") enjoy different sensor size.

Photography Glossary

The E-3 was manufactured 5 years before the LZ20 which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-3 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Panasonic LZ20 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before getting straight into a complete comparison, below is a concise summation of how the E-3 matches up vs the LZ20 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Here is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus E-3 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ20. The entire galleries are available at Olympus E-3 Gallery & Panasonic LZ20 Gallery.

If you're looking to carry around your camera often, you will need to factor in its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-3 provides exterior measurements of 142mm x 116mm x 75mm (5.6" x 4.6" x 3.0") accompanied by a weight of 890 grams (1.96 lbs) while the Panasonic LZ20 has proportions of 120mm x 76mm x 80mm (4.7" x 3.0" x 3.1") having a weight of 499 grams (1.10 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-3 versus Panasonic LZ20 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you have attached during that time. Following is the front view sizing comparison of the E-3 against the LZ20.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-3 and LZ20 is 56 and 71 respectively.

More often than not, its difficult to visualize the difference in sensor sizes purely by seeing specs. The pic underneath will help give you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-3 and LZ20.

As you can plainly see, the 2 cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor sizes. The E-3 because of its bigger sensor is going to make getting shallower depth of field easier and the Panasonic LZ20 will show extra detail due to its extra 6MP. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop pictures somewhat more aggressively. The more aged E-3 will be disadvantaged in sensor tech.