Olympus E-510 vs Olympus E-P1

Its time to look much closer at the Olympus E-510 and Olympus E-P1, one being a Advanced DSLR and the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and both of them are built by Olympus. The resolution of the E-510 (10MP) and the E-P1 (12MP) is relatively well matched and both cameras provide the identical sensor dimensions (Four Thirds).

Photography Glossary

The E-510 was introduced 20 months before the E-P1 which makes them a generation apart from each other. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-510 being a Mid-size SLR camera and the Olympus E-P1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight to a complete comparison, here is a simple view of how the E-510 matches up versus the E-P1 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus E-510 and Olympus PEN E-P1. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-510 Gallery and Olympus E-P1 Gallery.

If you are going to lug around your camera regularly, you will want to factor its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-510 features exterior dimensions of 136mm x 92mm x 68mm (5.4" x 3.6" x 2.7") with a weight of 490 grams (1.08 lbs) while the Olympus E-P1 has measurements of 121mm x 70mm x 36mm (4.8" x 2.8" x 1.4") with a weight of 355 grams (0.78 lbs).

Check the Olympus E-510 and Olympus E-P1 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are using at that moment. Below is a front view proportions comparison of the E-510 vs the E-P1.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability rating of the E-510 and E-P1 is 69 and 86 respectively.

In many cases, it's tough to picture the difference between sensor measurements only by checking specs. The visual below may offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the E-510 and E-P1.

As you can plainly see, each of the cameras feature the identical sensor size albeit different resolution. You should count on the Olympus E-P1 to give you more detail using its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also help you crop photographs way more aggressively. The older E-510 is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor innovation.