Olympus E-300 vs Panasonic FH5

Here, we are matching up the Olympus E-300 and Panasonic FH5, one being a Advanced DSLR and the other is a Small Sensor Compact by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a significant gap among the image resolutions of the E-300 (8MP) and FH5 (16MP) and the E-300 (Four Thirds) and FH5 (1/2.3") have different sensor dimensions.

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The E-300 was announced 7 years prior to the FH5 and that is a fairly sizable gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-300 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Panasonic FH5 being a Compact camera.

Before going straight to a more detailed comparison, here is a concise highlight of how the E-300 matches up vs the FH5 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus E-300 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH5. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus E-300 Gallery and Panasonic FH5 Gallery.

In case you're planning to lug around your camera regularly, you will want to factor in its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-300 has got exterior dimensions of 147mm x 85mm x 64mm (5.8" x 3.3" x 2.5") accompanied by a weight of 624 grams (1.38 lbs) and the Panasonic FH5 has measurements of 94mm x 54mm x 19mm (3.7" x 2.1" x 0.7") having a weight of 121 grams (0.27 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-300 and Panasonic FH5 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you have attached at that time. The following is a front view overall size comparison of the E-300 compared to the FH5.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-300 and FH5 is 67 and 96 respectively.

Sometimes, its tough to visualize the difference in sensor measurements simply by researching specs. The visual here may offer you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-300 and FH5.

As you can plainly see, both of the cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-300 with its larger sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF easier and the Panasonic FH5 will provide you with greater detail with its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop images way more aggressively. The older E-300 will be behind when it comes to sensor innovation.