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Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II

Portability
58
Imaging
48
Features
76
Overall
59
Olympus E-5 front
 
Pentax K-3 II front
Portability
59
Imaging
66
Features
84
Overall
73

Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II Key Specs

Olympus E-5
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 800g - 143 x 117 x 75mm
  • Introduced February 2011
  • Succeeded the Olympus E-3
Pentax K-3 II
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3.2" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 51200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 800g - 131 x 100 x 77mm
  • Revealed April 2015
  • Replaced the Pentax K-3
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Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II Overview

Below is a extensive assessment of the Olympus E-5 and Pentax K-3 II, both Advanced DSLR cameras by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. There exists a considerable gap among the image resolutions of the E-5 (12MP) and K-3 II (24MP) and the E-5 (Four Thirds) and K-3 II (APS-C) boast different sensor size.

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The E-5 was unveiled 5 years before the K-3 II and that is a fairly large difference as far as camera technology is concerned. The two cameras have the same body design (Mid-size SLR).

Before delving into a thorough comparison, here is a simple introduction of how the E-5 scores against the K-3 II with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-5 over the Pentax K-3 II

 E-5 K-3 II 
Display typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating display
Selfie screen Take selfies

Reasons to pick Pentax K-3 II over the Olympus E-5

 K-3 II E-5 
RevealedApril 2015February 2011More recent by 51 months
Display dimensions3.2"3"Larger display (+0.2")
Display resolution1037k920kCrisper display (+117k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-5 and Pentax K-3 II

 E-5 K-3 II 
Focus manually More accurate focus
Touch display Absent Touch display

Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II Physical Comparison

For anybody who is intending to lug around your camera regularly, you are going to need to think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-5 has exterior measurements of 143mm x 117mm x 75mm (5.6" x 4.6" x 3.0") with a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs) and the Pentax K-3 II has proportions of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") along with a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

Check the Olympus E-5 and Pentax K-3 II in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you have at the time. Here is a front view dimensions comparison of the E-5 versus the K-3 II.

Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-5 and K-3 II is 58 and 59 respectively.

Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II Sensor Comparison

More often than not, its hard to picture the gap in sensor measurements merely by checking out specifications. The visual here should offer you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the E-5 and K-3 II.

To sum up, both of those cameras have different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The E-5 using its smaller sensor is going to make getting bokeh tougher and the Pentax K-3 II will provide greater detail having an extra 12 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also allow you to crop photos a bit more aggressively. The older E-5 will be behind when it comes to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II sensor size comparison

Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-5
Portrait photography with Pentax K-3 II
60
has manual focus
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers face detection focus
delivers RAW files
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
79
manual focus
good MP (24MP)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
features face detect focusing
delivers RAW files
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-5 Street photography factors
Pentax K-3 II Street photography factors
71
screen articulates fully
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
weather sealing
69
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
weather sealing
very good ISO range (51,200)
no articulating screen
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-5 as a Sports photography camera
Pentax K-3 II as a Sports photography camera
59
high shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
weather sealing
supports phase detect auto focus
slow continuous shooting (5.0 fps)
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
76
maximum shutter speed is high (1/8,000 seconds)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (24 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
features tracking focus
weather sealing
supports phase detect AF
low battery life (720 CIPA)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-5 Travel photography highlights
Pentax K-3 II Travel photography highlights
56
weather sealing
has built in flash
display is selfie friendly
doesn't have Timelapse recording
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
56
weather sealing
good MP (24MP)
low battery life (720 per charge)
does not feature selfie friendly display
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-5 Landscape photography details
Pentax K-3 II Landscape photography details
65
has manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
good sized screen (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW files
weather sealing
has double storage slots
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
doesn't have Timelapse recording
78
manual focus
switch lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
screen size is good (3.2")
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
good MP (24MP)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
no low pass filter
very good ISO range (51,200)
delivers RAW files
weather sealing
has double storage slots
low battery life (720 CIPA)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-5 Vlogging details
Pentax K-3 II Vlogging details
64
display is selfie friendly
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection focus
comes with external microphone port
video resolution low (1280 x 720 pxls)
34
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
features face detect focusing
high res video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
comes with mic port
does not feature selfie friendly display
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Olympus E-5 vs Pentax K-3 II Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-5 and Pentax K-3 II
 Olympus E-5Pentax K-3 II
General Information
Manufacturer Olympus Pentax
Model Olympus E-5 Pentax K-3 II
Type Advanced DSLR Advanced DSLR
Introduced 2011-02-03 2015-04-23
Body design Mid-size SLR Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic V+ Prime III
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 24 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 and 16:9 3:2
Highest Possible resolution 4032 x 3024 6016 x 4000
Maximum native ISO 6400 51200
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 11 27
Cross focus points 11 25
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds Pentax KAF2
Total lenses 45 151
Crop factor 2.1 1.5
Screen
Display type Fully Articulated Fixed Type
Display size 3 inches 3.2 inches
Resolution of display 920 thousand dot 1,037 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Display technology HyperCrystal transmissive LCD -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentaprism) Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder coverage 100% 100%
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x 0.64x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60s 30s
Fastest shutter speed 1/8000s 1/8000s
Continuous shutter speed 5.0 frames/s 8.3 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 18.00 m (at ISO 200) no built-in flash
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, Fill-in Auto Flash Discharge, Auto Flash + Red-eye Reduction, Flash On, Flash On + Red-eye Reduction, Slow-speed Sync, Slow-speed Sync + Red-eye, P-TTL, Trailing Curtain Sync, Contrast-control-sync, High-speed sync, Wireless sync (available with dedicated external flash)
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/250s 1/180s
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60i, 50i, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video file format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, H.264
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None Optional
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 3.0 (5 GBit/sec)
GPS None BuiltIn
Physical
Environment seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 800 gr (1.76 lbs) 800 gr (1.76 lbs)
Physical dimensions 143 x 117 x 75mm (5.6" x 4.6" x 3.0") 131 x 100 x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 56 80
DXO Color Depth score 21.6 23.6
DXO Dynamic range score 10.5 13.6
DXO Low light score 519 1106
Other
Battery life 870 images 720 images
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model BLM-5 D-LI90
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage Compact Flash (Type I or II)/SD/SDHC/SDXC Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots 2 2
Retail price $1,700 $829