Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH27

Its time to take a closer look at the Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH27, one is a Advanced DSLR and the other is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a huge gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-500 (8MP) and FH27 (16MP) and the E-500 (Four Thirds) and FH27 (1/2.3") have different sensor size.

Photography Glossary

The E-500 was brought out 6 years before the FH27 which is quite a significant gap as far as technology is concerned. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-500 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Panasonic FH27 being a Compact camera.

Before going straight to a detailed comparison, here is a simple overview of how the E-500 scores vs the FH27 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

The following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus E-500 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH27. The entire galleries are provided at Olympus E-500 Gallery and Panasonic FH27 Gallery.

If you are intending to travel with your camera often, you will need to consider its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-500 has exterior measurements of 130mm x 95mm x 66mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") and a weight of 479 grams (1.06 lbs) whilst the Panasonic FH27 has dimensions of 99mm x 57mm x 28mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 1.1") with a weight of 152 grams (0.34 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-500 vs Panasonic FH27 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you choose at that moment. The following is a front view scale comparison of the E-500 compared to the FH27.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-500 and FH27 is 70 and 94 respectively.

Typically, it is very difficult to picture the contrast between sensor dimensions merely by reading specs. The image here should provide you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the E-500 and FH27.

As you can plainly see, both of those cameras provide different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The E-500 due to its larger sensor is going to make achieving bokeh easier and the Panasonic FH27 will deliver more detail having its extra 8MP. Greater resolution can also enable you to crop pics more aggressively. The more aged E-500 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor tech.