Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic F5

Below is a in depth analysis of the Olympus E-500 versus Panasonic F5, former being a Advanced DSLR while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by brands Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a considerable gap among the image resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and F5 (14MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and F5 (1/2.3") possess totally different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The E-500 was introduced 8 years before the F5 and that is a fairly large difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Panasonic F5 being a Compact camera.

Before going straight into a thorough comparison, below is a quick summation of how the E-500 matches up vs the F5 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus E-500 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-F5. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-500 Gallery & Panasonic F5 Gallery.

For those who are planning to lug around your camera frequently, you will need to factor its weight and size. The Olympus E-500 has outside dimensions of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") with a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) and the Panasonic F5 has specifications of 97mm x 58mm x 22mm (3.8" x 2.3" x 0.9") along with a weight of 121 grams (0.27 lbs).

Examine the Olympus E-500 versus Panasonic F5 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will vary dependant on the lens you are utilising at that moment. Underneath is the front view measurements comparison of the E-500 and the F5.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-500 and F5 is 70 and 96 respectively.

More often than not, it's hard to visualise the gap in sensor measurements merely by viewing specs. The graphic underneath should give you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the E-500 and F5.

All in all, the two cameras offer different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-500 with its bigger sensor will make shooting bokeh simpler and the Panasonic F5 will provide you with extra detail using its extra 6MP. Higher resolution will help you crop pictures a little more aggressively. The older E-500 will be behind when it comes to sensor innovation.