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Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III

Portability
81
Imaging
52
Features
70
Overall
59
Olympus OM-D E-M5 front
 
Sony Alpha A7S III front
Portability
61
Imaging
65
Features
92
Overall
75

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III Key Specs

Olympus E-M5
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 425g - 122 x 89 x 43mm
  • Announced April 2012
  • Refreshed by Olympus E-M5 II
Sony A7S III
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Full frame Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 80 - 102400 (Raise to 409600)
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 699g - 129 x 97 x 81mm
  • Released July 2020
  • Superseded the Sony A7S II
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Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III Overview

Here, we will be evaluating the Olympus E-M5 and Sony A7S III, former is a Advanced Mirrorless while the latter is a Pro Mirrorless by competitors Olympus and Sony. There is a noticeable difference among the resolutions of the E-M5 (16MP) and A7S III (12MP) and the E-M5 (Four Thirds) and A7S III (Full frame) offer totally different sensor size.

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The E-M5 was introduced 9 years prior to the A7S III which is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras feature the same body design (SLR-style mirrorless).

Before diving straight to a comprehensive comparison, here is a concise overview of how the E-M5 scores vs the A7S III with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-M5 over the Sony A7S III

 E-M5 A7S III 

Reasons to pick Sony A7S III over the Olympus E-M5

 A7S III E-M5 
ReleasedJuly 2020April 2012Newer by 100 months
Screen typeFully articulatedTiltingFully Articulating screen
Screen resolution1440k610kSharper screen (+830k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies

Common features in the Olympus E-M5 and Sony A7S III

 E-M5 A7S III 
Focus manually Very precise focus
Screen size3"3"Same screen size
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III Physical Comparison

When you are going to travel with your camera, you're going to have to factor in its weight and volume. The Olympus E-M5 has outside dimensions of 122mm x 89mm x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") with a weight of 425 grams (0.94 lbs) whilst the Sony A7S III has sizing of 129mm x 97mm x 81mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 3.2") having a weight of 699 grams (1.54 lbs).

Compare the Olympus E-M5 and Sony A7S III in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you have chosen at that time. Following is a front view over all size comparison of the E-M5 and the A7S III.

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III size comparison

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability grade of the E-M5 and A7S III is 81 and 61 respectively.

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III Sensor Comparison

Often, it is very hard to see the difference in sensor dimensions only by researching specs. The image here will help provide you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the E-M5 and A7S III.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras come with different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The E-M5 with its smaller sensor will make shooting shallower DOF more difficult and the Olympus E-M5 will result in greater detail using its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will allow you to crop shots a good deal more aggressively. The more aged E-M5 will be disadvantaged in sensor tech.

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III sensor size comparison

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-M5
Portrait photography with Sony A7S III
71
has manual focus
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
offers face detect autofocus
supports RAW files
71
manual focus
great sensor size (Full frame)
provides face detect autofocus
delivers RAW formats
MP count low (12MP)
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Street photography details
Sony A7S III Street photography details
82
has a tilting screen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
supports touch focus
weather proof
above average high ISO (25,600)
76
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
great sensor size (Full frame)
delivers RAW formats
offers focus by touch
environment proof
good high ISO (102,400)
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-M5
Sports photography with Sony A7S III
67
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
MP count decent (16MP)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
offers tracking focus
weather proof
lacks phase detect autofocus
76
maximum shutter speed is high (1/8,000 seconds)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
great sensor size (Full frame)
provides tracking focus
environment proof
great battery life (600 shots)
sensor has phase detect autofocus
MP count low (12MP)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Travel photography information
Sony A7S III Travel photography information
66
weather proof
supports touch focus
MP count decent (16MP)
lack of Timelapse recording
screen isn't selfie friendly
70
great battery life (600 per charge)
environment proof
supports bluetooth
offers focus by touch
selfie friendly screen
MP count low (12MP)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Landscape photography features
Sony A7S III Landscape photography features
73
has manual focus
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3")
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
above average high ISO (25,600)
supports RAW files
weather proof
lack of Timelapse recording
77
manual focus
change lenses (Sony E mount)
pretty good screen size (3")
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
great sensor size (Full frame)
good high ISO (102,400)
delivers RAW formats
environment proof
great battery life (600 CIPA)
has dual storage slots
MP count low (12 megapixels)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-M5 Vlogging info
Sony A7S III Vlogging info
34
touchscreen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
offers face detect autofocus
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
screen isn't selfie friendly
lack of microphone socket
77
selfie friendly screen
built-in touchscreen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
provides face detect autofocus
high quality video (3840 x 2160 pxls)
includes mic jack
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Olympus E-M5 vs Sony A7S III Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-M5 and Sony A7S III
 Olympus OM-D E-M5Sony Alpha A7S III
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus OM-D E-M5 Sony Alpha A7S III
Class Advanced Mirrorless Pro Mirrorless
Announced 2012-04-30 2020-07-21
Body design SLR-style mirrorless SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic VI Bionz XR
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds Full frame
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 35.6 x 23.8mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 847.3mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 12 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4608 x 3456 4240 x 2832
Highest native ISO 25600 102400
Highest enhanced ISO - 409600
Minimum native ISO 200 80
RAW format
Minimum enhanced ISO 100 50
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Autofocus touch
Continuous autofocus
Autofocus single
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Live view autofocus
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Total focus points 35 759
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds Sony E
Total lenses 107 121
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1
Screen
Range of screen Tilting Fully articulated
Screen size 3" 3"
Screen resolution 610k dot 1,440k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Screen technology Touch control in electrostatic capacitance type OLED monitor -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic Electronic
Viewfinder resolution 1,440k dot 9,440k dot
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.58x 0.91x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/8000 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 9.0fps 10.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance no built-in flash no built-in flash
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync (2), Manual (3 levels) no built-in flash
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/250 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 3840 x 2160 @ 120p / 280 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM 3840 x 2160 @ 100p / 280 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM 3840 x 2160 @ 60p / 200 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM 3840 x 2160 @ 50p / 200 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM 3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 140 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM 3840 x 2160 @ 25p / 140 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM 3840 x 2160 @ 24p / 100 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM 1920 x 1080 @ 120p / 100 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM 1920 x 1080 @ 100p / 100 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM 1920 x 1080 @ 60p / 50 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM 1920 x 1080 @ 50p / 50 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM 1920 x 1080 @ 25p / 50 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM 1920 x 1080 @ 24p / 50 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 3840x2160
Video data format H.264, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, XAVC S, XAVC HS, XAVC S-1, H.264, H.265
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 GBit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 425g (0.94 lb) 699g (1.54 lb)
Physical dimensions 122 x 89 x 43mm (4.8" x 3.5" x 1.7") 129 x 97 x 81mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 3.2")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 71 85
DXO Color Depth rating 22.8 23.6
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.3 13.3
DXO Low light rating 826 2993
Other
Battery life 360 photos 600 photos
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLN-1 NP-FZ100
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec; continuous (3 or 5 exposures))
Time lapse recording With downloadable app
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC Dual SD/CFexpress Type A slots
Storage slots One Dual
Launch pricing $799 $3,499