Olympus E-M1 vs Panasonic ZS15

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.

Below is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus E-M1 Gallery & Panasonic ZS15 Gallery.

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.

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.

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

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.