Clicky

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42

Portability
80
Imaging
54
Features
84
Overall
66
Olympus OM-D E-M5 II front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS42 front
Portability
95
Imaging
33
Features
10
Overall
23

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42 Key Specs

Olympus E-M5 II
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 469g - 124 x 85 x 45mm
  • Introduced February 2015
  • Previous Model is Olympus E-M5
  • Successor is Olympus E-M5 III
Panasonic FS42
(Full Review)
  • 10MP - 1/2.5" Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 1000 (Expand to 6400)
  • 640 x 480 video
  • 33-132mm (F2.8-5.9) lens
  • 132g - 98 x 55 x 22mm
  • Released April 2009
Photobucket discusses licensing 13 billion images with AI firms

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42 Overview

On this page, we will be analyzing the Olympus E-M5 II and Panasonic FS42, one being a Advanced Mirrorless and the latter is a Ultracompact by companies Olympus and Panasonic. There is a sizeable difference among the sensor resolutions of the E-M5 II (16MP) and FS42 (10MP) and the E-M5 II (Four Thirds) and FS42 (1/2.5") offer different sensor sizing.

Sora from OpenAI releases its first ever music video

The E-M5 II was revealed 5 years later than the FS42 and that is a fairly large gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-M5 II being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic FS42 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before going straight to a full comparison, here is a quick view of how the E-M5 II grades versus the FS42 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Japan-exclusive Leica Leitz Phone 3 features big sensor and new modes
	
	

Reasons to pick Olympus E-M5 II over the Panasonic FS42

 E-M5 II FS42 
ReleasedFebruary 2015April 2009Fresher by 71 months
Focus manually Very accurate focus
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Screen dimensions3"2.5"Bigger screen (+0.5")
Screen resolution1037k230kCrisper screen (+807k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Panasonic FS42 over the Olympus E-M5 II

 FS42 E-M5 II 

Common features in the Olympus E-M5 II and Panasonic FS42

 E-M5 II FS42 

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42 Physical Comparison

For those who are looking to carry your camera, you'll need to take into account its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-M5 II enjoys exterior measurements of 124mm x 85mm x 45mm (4.9" x 3.3" x 1.8") accompanied by a weight of 469 grams (1.03 lbs) whilst the Panasonic FS42 has proportions of 98mm x 55mm x 22mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9") accompanied by a weight of 132 grams (0.29 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus E-M5 II and Panasonic FS42 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you choose at that time. Following is a front view dimension comparison of the E-M5 II compared to the FS42.

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42 size comparison

Looking at size and weight, the portability grade of the E-M5 II and FS42 is 80 and 95 respectively.

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42 Sensor Comparison

Oftentimes, it's hard to picture the gap in sensor sizing simply by looking through technical specs. The visual below might give you a clearer sense of the sensor sizing in the E-M5 II and FS42.

As you can tell, each of these cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The E-M5 II with its bigger sensor is going to make achieving shallow depth of field simpler and the Olympus E-M5 II will provide you with more detail because of its extra 6MP. Higher resolution will let you crop shots more aggressively. The fresher E-M5 II provides an advantage with regard to sensor tech.

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Snapchat Adds Watermarks to AI-Created Images

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-M5 II Portrait photography details
Panasonic FS42 Portrait photography details
72
has manual focus
resolution is good (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports face detect autofocus
supports RAW formats
19
no manual focus
no manual mode
external flash not possible
megapixel count low (10 megapixels)
sensor size is small (1/2.5")
no RAW files
Meta to Introduce 'AI-Generated' Labels for Media starting next month

Street Comparison

Olympus E-M5 II Street photography highlights
Panasonic FS42 Street photography highlights
82
fully articulated screen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
features touch to focus
weather sealing
above average high ISO (25,600)
47
no moving screen
lack of image stabilization
sensor size is small (1/2.5")
no RAW files
low maximum ISO (1,000)
Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD Cards

Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-M5 II
Sports photography with Panasonic FS42
65
high shutter speed (1/8,000s)
quiet mode (1/16,000s)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports tracking focus
weather sealing
low battery pack (310 per charge)
has no phase detect autofocus
16
continuous shooting slow (2.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority
lack of image stabilization
megapixel count low (10MP)
sensor size is small (1/2.5")
no phase detect auto focus
President Biden pushes bill mandating TikTok sale or ban

Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M5 II Travel photography details
Panasonic FS42 Travel photography details
74
weather sealing
features touch to focus
resolution is good (16MP)
selfie friendly screen
low battery pack (310 shots)
51
has built in flash
missing Timelapse recording
megapixel count low (10MP)
doesn't contain selfie friendly display
wide angle not great (33mm)
sluggish max aperture (f2.8)
Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone

Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M5 II Landscape photography advice
Panasonic FS42 Landscape photography advice
74
has manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3")
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
above average high ISO (25,600)
supports RAW formats
weather sealing
low battery pack (310 per charge)
22
no manual focus
cannot swap lens (fixed lens mount)
wide angle not great (33mm)
sluggish max aperture (f2.8)
small screen (2.5")
no manual mode
lack of image stabilization
megapixel count low (10 megapixels)
sensor size is small (1/2.5")
low maximum ISO (1,000)
no RAW files
missing Timelapse recording
Photography Glossary

Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M5 II Vlogging info
Panasonic FS42 Vlogging info
82
selfie friendly screen
touchscreen functionality
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
supports face detect autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 resolution)
comes with microphone socket
22
wide angle not great (33mm)
sluggish max aperture (f2.8)
doesn't contain selfie friendly display
lack of image stabilization
video resolution low (640 x 480 resolution)
missing microphone jack
Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

Olympus E-M5 II vs Panasonic FS42 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M5 II and Panasonic FS42
 Olympus OM-D E-M5 IIPanasonic Lumix DMC-FS42
General Information
Make Olympus Panasonic
Model Olympus OM-D E-M5 II Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS42
Category Advanced Mirrorless Ultracompact
Introduced 2015-02-06 2009-04-17
Body design SLR-style mirrorless Ultracompact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic VII -
Sensor type MOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.5"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 5.744 x 4.308mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 24.7mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 10 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 4608 x 3456 3648 x 2736
Maximum native ISO 25600 1000
Maximum boosted ISO - 6400
Lowest native ISO 200 80
RAW data
Lowest boosted ISO 100 -
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Tracking autofocus
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detect focus
Contract detect focus
Phase detect focus
Number of focus points 81 -
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 33-132mm (4.0x)
Highest aperture - f/2.8-5.9
Macro focus range - 5cm
Total lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 6.3
Screen
Range of display Fully Articulated Fixed Type
Display size 3" 2.5"
Display resolution 1,037 thousand dot 230 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 2,360 thousand dot -
Viewfinder coverage 100% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.74x -
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 60s
Highest shutter speed 1/8000s 1/2000s
Highest quiet shutter speed 1/16000s -
Continuous shooting speed 10.0fps 2.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range no built-in flash 6.30 m
Flash settings Auto, redeye, fill, off, redeye slow sync, slow sync, 2nd-curtain slow sync, manual Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Sync
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Highest flash sync 1/250s -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p), 640 x 480 (30p) 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 640x480
Video data format MPEG-4, H.264, Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Microphone 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 proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 469 grams (1.03 lb) 132 grams (0.29 lb)
Physical dimensions 124 x 85 x 45mm (4.9" x 3.3" x 1.8") 98 x 55 x 22mm (3.9" x 2.2" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 73 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 23.0 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 12.4 not tested
DXO Low light score 896 not tested
Other
Battery life 310 photos -
Battery format Battery Pack -
Battery model BLN-1 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 secs, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC card, Internal
Storage slots One One
Cost at launch $699 $580