Olympus E-M10 II vs Panasonic ZS3

Its time to look more closely at the Olympus E-M10 II and Panasonic ZS3, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by rivals Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a sizeable gap between the resolutions of the E-M10 II (16MP) and ZS3 (10MP) and the E-M10 II (Four Thirds) and ZS3 (1/2.3") have totally different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The E-M10 II was unveiled 6 years later than the ZS3 and that is quite a large gap as far as technology is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-M10 II being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic ZS3 being a Compact camera.

Before going straight to a thorough comparison, here is a quick overview of how the E-M10 II matches up versus the ZS3 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Here is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus OM-D E-M10 II and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3. The full galleries are provided at Olympus E-M10 II Gallery and Panasonic ZS3 Gallery.

For anybody who is planning to carry your camera frequently, you need to think about its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-M10 II has outside measurements of 120mm x 83mm x 47mm (4.7" x 3.3" x 1.9") with a weight of 390 grams (0.86 lbs) and the Panasonic ZS3 has dimensions of 103mm x 60mm x 33mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3") and a weight of 229 grams (0.50 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-M10 II and Panasonic ZS3 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you choose at the time. Following is a front view scale comparison of the E-M10 II against the ZS3.

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-M10 II and ZS3 is 82 and 91 respectively.

More often than not, it is difficult to envision the contrast between sensor sizing purely by looking at technical specs. The visual here might give you a better sense of the sensor sizing in the E-M10 II and ZS3.

As you can tell, both cameras have different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The E-M10 II with its larger sensor will make getting shallower depth of field less difficult and the Olympus E-M10 II will give greater detail having an extra 6MP. Greater resolution will also let you crop pics a bit more aggressively. The more modern E-M10 II will have an advantage in sensor innovation.