Olympus E-M5 III vs Olympus E-PL3

Lets look more closely at the Olympus E-M5 III and Olympus E-PL3, one being a Advanced Mirrorless and the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and they are both sold by Olympus. There exists a significant gap among the sensor resolutions of the E-M5 III (20MP) and E-PL3 (12MP) but they feature the same exact sensor measurements (Four Thirds).

Photography Glossary

The E-M5 III was unveiled 8 years later than the E-PL3 and that is a fairly sizable gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Both the cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-M5 III being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight into a comprehensive comparison, below is a brief view of how the E-M5 III matches up against the E-PL3 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus OM-D E-M5 III and Olympus PEN E-PL3. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus E-M5 III Gallery and Olympus E-PL3 Gallery.

If you're looking to lug around your camera regularly, you'll need to factor its weight and volume. The Olympus E-M5 III enjoys outside dimensions of 125mm x 85mm x 50mm (4.9" x 3.3" x 2.0") along with a weight of 414 grams (0.91 lbs) and the Olympus E-PL3 has sizing of 110mm x 64mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") having a weight of 313 grams (0.69 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus E-M5 III and Olympus E-PL3 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary based on the lens you choose at that moment. Here is the front view over all size comparison of the E-M5 III compared to the E-PL3.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-M5 III and E-PL3 is 80 and 88 respectively.

Normally, its tough to visualise the gap in sensor measurements merely by seeing specifications. The photograph below should give you a more clear sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-M5 III and E-PL3.

To sum up, each of these cameras offer the same exact sensor sizing albeit not the same megapixels. You should expect the Olympus E-M5 III to show extra detail having an extra 8 Megapixels. Higher resolution will allow you to crop photographs a little more aggressively. The younger E-M5 III will have an advantage with regard to sensor innovation.