Olympus FE-45 vs Panasonic GF8

Here is a thorough overview of the Olympus FE-45 vs Panasonic GF8, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a sizable gap among the image resolutions of the FE-45 (10MP) and GF8 (16MP) and the FE-45 (1/2.3") and GF8 (Four Thirds) use totally different sensor sizing.

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The FE-45 was announced 8 years before the GF8 and that is a fairly significant difference as far as camera technology is concerned. The two cameras come with different body type with the Olympus FE-45 being a Compact camera and the Panasonic GF8 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before delving straight into a complete comparison, below is a short summary of how the FE-45 scores vs the GF8 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus FE-45 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF8. The whole galleries are viewable at Olympus FE-45 Gallery & Panasonic GF8 Gallery.

For anybody who is going to carry your camera, you'll have to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Olympus FE-45 features outside measurements of 94mm x 62mm x 23mm (3.7" x 2.4" x 0.9") having a weight of 142 grams (0.31 lbs) while the Panasonic GF8 has dimensions of 107mm x 65mm x 33mm (4.2" x 2.6" x 1.3") and a weight of 266 grams (0.59 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus FE-45 vs Panasonic GF8 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you select at the time. Below is the front view sizing comparison of the FE-45 versus the GF8.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the FE-45 and GF8 is 95 and 90 respectively.

Quite often, it is very difficult to visualise the difference in sensor sizing purely by going through specs. The visual underneath may give you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the FE-45 and GF8.

All in all, both of those cameras have got different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The FE-45 with its smaller sensor will make achieving shallower depth of field tougher and the Panasonic GF8 will produce greater detail with its extra 6 Megapixels. Greater resolution will enable you to crop photos much more aggressively. The older FE-45 will be behind when it comes to sensor tech.