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Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15

Portability
71
Imaging
53
Features
85
Overall
65
Olympus OM-D E-M1 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15 front
Portability
92
Imaging
36
Features
37
Overall
36

Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15 Key Specs

Olympus E-M1
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Display
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 497g - 130 x 94 x 63mm
  • Introduced October 2013
  • Replacement is Olympus E-M1 II
Panasonic ZS15
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 24-384mm (F3.3-5.9) lens
  • 208g - 105 x 58 x 33mm
  • Launched June 2012
  • Alternative Name is Lumix DMC-TZ25
  • Successor is Panasonic ZS20
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Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15 Overview

Here is a comprehensive assessment of the Olympus E-M1 versus Panasonic ZS15, former being a Pro Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by companies Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a sizable gap among the sensor resolutions of the E-M1 (16MP) and ZS15 (12MP) and the E-M1 (Four Thirds) and ZS15 (1/2.3") provide different sensor size.

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The E-M1 was unveiled 17 months later than the ZS15 making them a generation apart from one another. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-M1 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic ZS15 being a Compact camera.

Before going into a more detailed comparison, here is a concise summary of how the E-M1 matches up versus the ZS15 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M1 over the Panasonic ZS15

 E-M1 ZS15 
LaunchedOctober 2013June 2012Fresher by 17 months
Manually focus Very precise focus
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display resolution1037k460kSharper display (+577k dot)
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Panasonic ZS15 over the Olympus E-M1

 ZS15 E-M1 

Common features in the Olympus E-M1 and Panasonic ZS15

 E-M1 ZS15 
Display size3"3"Same display size
Selfie screen Neither features selfie screen

Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15 Physical Comparison

For anybody who is planning to carry your camera regularly, you have to think about its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-M1 enjoys outside measurements of 130mm x 94mm x 63mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.5") with a weight of 497 grams (1.10 lbs) and the Panasonic ZS15 has measurements of 105mm x 58mm x 33mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.3") along with a weight of 208 grams (0.46 lbs).

See the Olympus E-M1 versus Panasonic ZS15 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you use at that time. Following is a front view measurement comparison of the E-M1 against the ZS15.

Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15 size comparison

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-M1 and ZS15 is 71 and 92 respectively.

Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15 Sensor Comparison

Typically, its difficult to visualize the gap in sensor sizing purely by researching a spec sheet. The visual underneath should offer you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M1 and ZS15.

As you can see, the two cameras feature different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The E-M1 with its larger sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF simpler and the Olympus E-M1 will render more detail having an extra 4MP. Greater resolution can also let you crop photos way more aggressively. The younger E-M1 provides an advantage in sensor technology.

Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-M1
Portrait photography with Panasonic ZS15
71
focusing manually
flash sync speed is above average (1/320 seconds)
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
provides face detection autofocus
supports RAW formats
21
focusing manually not possible
no external flash support
low resolution (12 megapixels)
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-M1
Street photography with Panasonic ZS15
78
has a tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
offers touch focus
weather proof
lighter than competitors in class (497 grams)
above average ISO range (25,600)
61
has image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competitors (208g)
screen is fixed
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-M1 Sports photography advice
Panasonic ZS15 Sports photography advice
70
high shutter speed (1/8,000s)
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent sensor resolution (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
provides tracking autofocus
weather proof
sensor has phase detect autofocus
not so great battery pack (350 shots)
36
amazing zoom range (24-384mm 16.0 x zoom)
has image stabilization (Optical)
features tracking autofocus
max frames per second low (2.0 frames per second)
low resolution (12 megapixels)
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
not so great battery life (260 CIPA)
doesn't have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-M1
Travel photography with Panasonic ZS15
65
lighter than competitors in class (497g)
weather proof
offers touch focus
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
not so great battery pack (350 CIPA)
does not posses selfie friendly screen
61
lighter than competitors (208g)
built-in flash
fairly wide (24mm)
long reach (384mm)
lack of Time Lapse function
not so great battery life (260 per charge)
low resolution (12 megapixels)
display is not selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f3.3)
OM System OM-1 Set to Enhance Autofocus

Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M1 Landscape photography highlights
Panasonic ZS15 Landscape photography highlights
73
focusing manually
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a decent size (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent sensor resolution (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
above average ISO range (25,600)
supports RAW formats
weather proof
not so great battery pack (350 CIPA)
37
fairly wide (24mm)
screen is a good size (3")
has image stabilization (Optical)
focusing manually not possible
can't change lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.3)
low resolution (12MP)
sensor size is very small (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
not so great battery life (260 shots)
lack of Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M1 as a Vlogging camera
Panasonic ZS15 as a Vlogging camera
36
screen is touchscreen
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
provides face detection autofocus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
includes external microphone socket
lighter than competitors in class (497 grams)
does not posses selfie friendly screen
33
fairly wide (24mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
high res video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
lighter than competitors (208 grams)
slow max aperture (f3.3)
display is not selfie friendly
lack of external mic jack
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Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M1 and Panasonic ZS15
 Olympus OM-D E-M1Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15
General Information
Company Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus OM-D E-M1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15
Also called as - Lumix DMC-TZ25
Type Pro Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Introduced 2013-10-28 2012-06-29
Body design SLR-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Chip TruePIC VII -
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 12 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4608 x 3456 4000 x 3000
Maximum native ISO 25600 6400
Minimum native ISO 100 100
RAW format
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
AF continuous
AF single
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Total focus points 81 23
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 24-384mm (16.0x)
Maximum aperture - f/3.3-5.9
Macro focusing distance - 3cm
Amount of lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Range of display Tilting Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3" 3"
Resolution of display 1,037 thousand dot 460 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 2,360 thousand dot -
Viewfinder coverage 100% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.74x -
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60s 15s
Fastest shutter speed 1/8000s 1/4000s
Continuous shutter speed 10.0 frames per sec 2.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance no built-in flash 6.40 m
Flash modes Flash Auto, Redeye, Fill-in, Flash Off, Red-eye Slow sync (1st curtain), Slow sync (1st curtain), Slow sync (2nd curtain), Manual Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/320s -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video file format H.264, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 497 grams (1.10 lb) 208 grams (0.46 lb)
Physical dimensions 130 x 94 x 63mm (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.5") 105 x 58 x 33mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.3")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 73 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 23.0 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.7 not tested
DXO Low light rating 757 not tested
Other
Battery life 350 photographs 260 photographs
Battery format Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLN-1 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 secs, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots One One
Pricing at release $799 $279