Olympus E-M5 vs Panasonic GF2

Its time to take a more detailed look at the Olympus E-M5 and Panasonic GF2, one is a Advanced Mirrorless and the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by companies Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a crucial gap between the resolutions of the E-M5 (16MP) and GF2 (12MP) but both cameras provide the identical sensor sizes (Four Thirds).

Photography Glossary

The E-M5 was revealed 15 months after the GF2 making them a generation away from one another. Each of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-M5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic GF2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight to a comprehensive comparison, here is a concise view of how the E-M5 scores against the GF2 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus OM-D E-M5 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF2. The full galleries are available at Olympus E-M5 Gallery and Panasonic GF2 Gallery.

When you are planning to carry around your camera frequently, you're going to have to factor in its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-M5 has outer measurements of 122mm x 89mm x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") accompanied by a weight of 425 grams (0.94 lbs) whilst the Panasonic GF2 has measurements of 113mm x 68mm x 33mm (4.4" x 2.7" x 1.3") with a weight of 310 grams (0.68 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-M5 and Panasonic GF2 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you select at that moment. The following is a front view measurement comparison of the E-M5 and the GF2.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-M5 and GF2 is 81 and 88 respectively.

Quite often, it can be tough to visualize the gap between sensor sizes just by reviewing a spec sheet. The image here might provide you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-M5 and GF2.

Clearly, both cameras come with the identical sensor size but different resolution. You should expect to see the Olympus E-M5 to offer greater detail because of its extra 4MP. Greater resolution can also enable you to crop pics a good deal more aggressively. The fresher E-M5 provides an advantage with regard to sensor technology.