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Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5

Portability
86
Imaging
47
Features
42
Overall
45
Olympus PEN E-P1 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH5 front
Portability
59
Imaging
60
Features
89
Overall
71

Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5 Key Specs

Olympus E-P1
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 355g - 121 x 70 x 36mm
  • Released July 2009
  • Successor is Olympus E-P2
Panasonic GH5
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3.2" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • 4096 x 2160 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 725g - 139 x 98 x 87mm
  • Introduced January 2017
  • Replaced the Panasonic GH4
  • Refreshed by Panasonic GH5 II
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Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5 Overview

Below, we will be reviewing the Olympus E-P1 and Panasonic GH5, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Pro Mirrorless by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a noticeable gap between the resolutions of the E-P1 (12MP) and GH5 (20MP) but they come with the exact same sensor dimensions (Four Thirds).

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The E-P1 was released 8 years prior to the GH5 and that is quite a sizable difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-P1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic GH5 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before we go straight into a thorough comparison, below is a quick introduction of how the E-P1 grades versus the GH5 with regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-P1 over the Panasonic GH5

 E-P1 GH5 

Reasons to pick Panasonic GH5 over the Olympus E-P1

 GH5 E-P1 
IntroducedJanuary 2017July 2009More recent by 90 months
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Screen dimension3.2"3"Bigger screen (+0.2")
Screen resolution1620k230kClearer screen (+1390k dot)
Selfie screen Easy selfies
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus E-P1 and Panasonic GH5

 E-P1 GH5 
Focus manually More precise focusing

Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5 Physical Comparison

If you're aiming to lug around your camera, you have to factor in its weight and volume. The Olympus E-P1 enjoys physical measurements of 121mm x 70mm x 36mm (4.8" x 2.8" x 1.4") and a weight of 355 grams (0.78 lbs) and the Panasonic GH5 has sizing of 139mm x 98mm x 87mm (5.5" x 3.9" x 3.4") accompanied by a weight of 725 grams (1.60 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-P1 and Panasonic GH5 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you choose at that time. Below is the front view overall size comparison of the E-P1 versus the GH5.

Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5 size comparison

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-P1 and GH5 is 86 and 59 respectively.

Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, it is difficult to picture the gap between sensor measurements simply by going over specifications. The visual below will give you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the E-P1 and GH5.

To sum up, each of these cameras have got the exact same sensor measurements albeit different resolution. You can expect the Panasonic GH5 to offer more detail as a result of its extra 8MP. Higher resolution will let you crop pictures much more aggressively. The older E-P1 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor tech.

Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-P1 Portrait photography advice
Panasonic GH5 Portrait photography advice
60
has manual focus
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
has face detect focus
exports RAW files
sensor resolution not great (12 megapixels)
76
you can focus manually
decent megapixels (20MP)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
supports face detect focus
delivers RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-P1 Street photography highlights
Panasonic GH5 Street photography highlights
74
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
screen is fixed
74
screen articulates
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
boasts focus by touch
weather sealing
very good ISO range (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-P1 Sports photography highlights
Panasonic GH5 Sports photography highlights
40
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
continuous shooting slow (3.0 frames per second)
sensor resolution not great (12 megapixels)
not so great battery power (300 CIPA)
doesn't have phase detect auto focus
68
max shutter speed is good (1/8,000s)
silent mode (1/16,000s)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent megapixels (20MP)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
supports tracking focus
weather sealing
bad battery life (410 CIPA)
does not have phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-P1 Travel photography details
Panasonic GH5 Travel photography details
43
no Timelapse recording
not so great battery power (300 CIPA)
sensor resolution not great (12MP)
screen isn't selfie friendly
68
weather sealing
supports bluetooth
boasts focus by touch
decent megapixels (20MP)
display is selfie friendly
bad battery life (410 shots)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-P1 as a Landscape photography camera
Panasonic GH5 as a Landscape photography camera
60
has manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
sensor resolution not great (12 megapixels)
not so great battery power (300 shots)
no Timelapse recording
75
you can focus manually
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3.2 inches)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent megapixels (20 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (Four Thirds)
does not have anti aliasing filter
very good ISO range (25,600)
delivers RAW formats
weather sealing
has double storage slots
bad battery life (410 CIPA)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-P1 Vlogging factors
Panasonic GH5 Vlogging factors
29
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
has face detect focus
screen isn't selfie friendly
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pixels)
no microphone jack
75
display is selfie friendly
built-in touchscreen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
supports face detect focus
high quality video (4096 x 2160 pxls)
includes microphone port
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Olympus E-P1 vs Panasonic GH5 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-P1 and Panasonic GH5
 Olympus PEN E-P1Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH5
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus PEN E-P1 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH5
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Pro Mirrorless
Released 2009-07-29 2017-01-04
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic V Venus Engine
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds Four Thirds
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest Possible resolution 4032 x 3024 5184 x 3888
Maximum native ISO 6400 25600
Min native ISO 100 200
RAW pictures
Min enhanced ISO - 100
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Selective autofocus
Center weighted autofocus
Multi area autofocus
Autofocus live view
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Total focus points 11 225
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds Micro Four Thirds
Total lenses 107 107
Crop factor 2.1 2.1
Screen
Range of screen Fixed Type Fully Articulated
Screen diagonal 3 inch 3.2 inch
Screen resolution 230k dot 1,620k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Screen tech HyperCrystal LCD with AR(Anti-Reflective) coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 3,680k dot
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.76x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 seconds 60 seconds
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/8000 seconds
Fastest silent shutter speed - 1/16000 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 3.0fps 12.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance no built-in flash no built-in flash
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, Auto/Redeye Reduction, Forced On, Forced On w/Redeye Reduction, Slow Sync, Slow Sync w/Redeye Reduction, Forced Off
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/180 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 4096 x 2160 (24p), 3840 x 2160 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 4096x2160
Video data format Motion JPEG MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 3.1 Gen 1(5 GBit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 355 grams (0.78 lb) 725 grams (1.60 lb)
Dimensions 121 x 70 x 36mm (4.8" x 2.8" x 1.4") 139 x 98 x 87mm (5.5" x 3.9" x 3.4")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 55 77
DXO Color Depth rating 21.4 23.9
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.4 13.0
DXO Low light rating 536 807
Other
Battery life 300 photographs 410 photographs
Battery form Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLS-1 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 secs; 10 secs w/3 shots)
Time lapse feature
Storage media SD/SDHC card Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-II compatible)
Storage slots Single 2
Launch price $182 $1,298