Olympus E-M10 vs Panasonic FZ1000 II

Its time to look more closely at the Olympus E-M10 and Panasonic FZ1000 II, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Large Sensor Superzoom by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. The sensor resolution of the E-M10 (16MP) and the FZ1000 II (20MP) is pretty similar but the E-M10 (Four Thirds) and FZ1000 II (1") boast different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The E-M10 was manufactured 5 years earlier than the FZ1000 II and that is quite a significant gap as far as tech is concerned. Both the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-M10 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic FZ1000 II being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before diving straight to a step-by-step comparison, here is a short synopsis of how the E-M10 scores against the FZ1000 II with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Following is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus OM-D E-M10 and Panasonic Lumix DC-FZ1000 II. The entire galleries are viewable at Olympus E-M10 Gallery and Panasonic FZ1000 II Gallery.

For those who are intending to carry your camera regularly, you will have to think about its weight and volume. The Olympus E-M10 provides outer dimensions of 119mm x 82mm x 46mm (4.7" x 3.2" x 1.8") with a weight of 396 grams (0.87 lbs) while the Panasonic FZ1000 II has sizing of 136mm x 97mm x 132mm (5.4" x 3.8" x 5.2") with a weight of 808 grams (1.78 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-M10 and Panasonic FZ1000 II in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are using at the time. Following is a front view scale comparison of the E-M10 versus the FZ1000 II.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability score of the E-M10 and FZ1000 II is 82 and 55 respectively.

In many cases, it is very hard to picture the gap between sensor sizing only by reviewing technical specs. The visual underneath will help give you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-M10 and FZ1000 II.

As you can tell, both the cameras provide different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The E-M10 featuring a bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field less difficult and the Panasonic FZ1000 II will deliver extra detail due to its extra 4MP. Higher resolution can also allow you to crop photographs more aggressively. The older E-M10 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor tech.