Olympus E-M1 II vs Panasonic SZ3

The following is a extensive overview of the Olympus E-M1 II and Panasonic SZ3, former is a Pro Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Compact by brands Olympus and Panasonic. There is a considerable difference between the image resolutions of the E-M1 II (20MP) and SZ3 (16MP) and the E-M1 II (Four Thirds) and SZ3 (1/2.3") posses different sensor measurements.

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The E-M1 II was launched 3 years after the SZ3 which is quite a large difference as far as tech is concerned. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-M1 II being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic SZ3 being a Compact camera.

Before delving right into a complete comparison, here is a brief view of how the E-M1 II matches up versus the SZ3 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Here is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II & Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ3. The complete galleries are provided at Olympus E-M1 II Gallery & Panasonic SZ3 Gallery.

If you are planning to travel with your camera frequently, you will have to think about its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-M1 II comes with physical dimensions of 134mm x 91mm x 67mm (5.3" x 3.6" x 2.6") accompanied by a weight of 574 grams (1.27 lbs) and the Panasonic SZ3 has measurements of 95mm x 56mm x 22mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") with a weight of 126 grams (0.28 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-M1 II and Panasonic SZ3 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you have at that time. Following is a front view physical size comparison of the E-M1 II compared to the SZ3.

Using size and weight, the portability score of the E-M1 II and SZ3 is 68 and 96 respectively.

In many cases, it is hard to picture the contrast between sensor dimensions just by reading through specifications. The picture here may provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the E-M1 II and SZ3.

To sum up, each of the cameras provide different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The E-M1 II featuring a larger sensor is going to make achieving shallow DOF less difficult and the Olympus E-M1 II will give extra detail utilizing its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop images more aggressively. The fresher E-M1 II should have an edge in sensor innovation.