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Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30

Portability
86
Imaging
47
Features
42
Overall
45
Olympus PEN E-P2 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ30 front
Portability
66
Imaging
40
Features
32
Overall
36

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30 Key Specs

Olympus E-P2
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 355g - 121 x 70 x 36mm
  • Launched April 2010
  • Superseded the Olympus E-P1
  • Successor is Olympus E-P3
Panasonic LZ30
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-875mm (F3.0-5.9) lens
  • 552g - 124 x 84 x 92mm
  • Announced January 2013
  • Older Model is Panasonic LZ20
  • Later Model is Panasonic LZ40
Photography Glossary

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30 Overview

Its time to look a little more closely at the Olympus E-P2 and Panasonic LZ30, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. There is a huge difference between the sensor resolutions of the E-P2 (12MP) and LZ30 (16MP) and the E-P2 (Four Thirds) and LZ30 (1/2.3") enjoy totally different sensor sizes.

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The E-P2 was brought out 3 years prior to the LZ30 and that is quite a significant gap as far as tech is concerned. Each of the cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-P2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic LZ30 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before delving straight into a in depth comparison, below is a simple overview of how the E-P2 scores vs the LZ30 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-P2 over the Panasonic LZ30

 E-P2 LZ30 
Focus manually Very exact focusing

Reasons to pick Panasonic LZ30 over the Olympus E-P2

 LZ30 E-P2 
AnnouncedJanuary 2013April 2010Fresher by 33 months
Display resolution460k230kCrisper display (+230k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-P2 and Panasonic LZ30

 E-P2 LZ30 
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Display sizing3"3"Equivalent display dimensions
Selfie screen Neither provides selfie screen
Touch display Neither provides Touch display

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30 Physical Comparison

For anybody who is aiming to carry your camera frequently, you have to consider its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-P2 provides external dimensions of 121mm x 70mm x 36mm (4.8" x 2.8" x 1.4") and a weight of 355 grams (0.78 lbs) whilst the Panasonic LZ30 has proportions of 124mm x 84mm x 92mm (4.9" x 3.3" x 3.6") with a weight of 552 grams (1.22 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-P2 and Panasonic LZ30 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you are working with at that time. Below is the front view dimensions comparison of the E-P2 versus the LZ30.

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30 size comparison

Looking at size and weight, the portability grade of the E-P2 and LZ30 is 86 and 66 respectively.

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30 Sensor Comparison

Usually, it is difficult to see the difference between sensor sizing merely by looking at specifications. The visual below may provide you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the E-P2 and LZ30.

Plainly, both of those cameras enjoy different megapixel count and different sensor sizing. The E-P2 due to its larger sensor will make getting shallow depth of field simpler and the Panasonic LZ30 will give more detail having its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will enable you to crop pics far more aggressively. The older E-P2 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-P2 Portrait photography information
Panasonic LZ30 Portrait photography information
60
has manual focus
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
offers face detection focusing
saves RAW formats
low resolution (12MP)
32
good MP (16MP)
lack of manual focus
cannot use external flash
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW support
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-P2 Street photography details
Panasonic LZ30 Street photography details
74
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
fixed screen
43
built in image stabilization (Optical)
screen does not articulate
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW support
more heavy than competition in class (552 grams)
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-P2
Sports photography with Panasonic LZ30
40
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
slow fps (3.0 frames per second)
low resolution (12MP)
bad battery (300 CIPA)
does not have phase detect AF
47
incredible zoom range (25-875mm 35.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
good MP (16MP)
offers tracking focus
good battery life (380 per charge)
very slow continuous shooting (1.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-P2 Travel photography highlights
Panasonic LZ30 Travel photography highlights
43
no Timelapse function
bad battery (300 CIPA)
low resolution (12MP)
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
56
good battery life (380 shots)
good MP (16 megapixels)
flash built-in
quite wide (25mm)
long zoom (875mm)
doesn't have Timelapse mode
more heavy than competition in class (552g)
does not have a selfie friendly display
slow max aperture (f3.0)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-P2
Landscape photography with Panasonic LZ30
60
has manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a good size (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
low resolution (12MP)
bad battery (300 CIPA)
no Timelapse function
45
quite wide (25mm)
screen size is good (3")
built in image stabilization (Optical)
good MP (16MP)
good battery life (380 shots)
lack of manual focus
cannot change lens (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.0)
small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW support
doesn't have Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-P2 Vlogging info
Panasonic LZ30 Vlogging info
29
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection focusing
doesn't offer selfie friendly display
low res video (1280 x 720 pxls)
no external microphone socket
22
quite wide (25mm)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
slow max aperture (f3.0)
does not have a selfie friendly display
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pixels)
doesn't have microphone socket
more heavy than competition in class (552 grams)
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Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic LZ30 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-P2 and Panasonic LZ30
 Olympus PEN E-P2Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ30
General Information
Make Olympus Panasonic
Model Olympus PEN E-P2 Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ30
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Launched 2010-04-22 2013-01-07
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless SLR-like (bridge)
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic V -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 -
Highest Possible resolution 4032 x 3024 4608 x 3456
Maximum native ISO 6400 6400
Lowest native ISO 100 100
RAW images
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 11 -
Cross focus points - -
Lens
Lens mounting type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 25-875mm (35.0x)
Largest aperture - f/3.0-5.9
Macro focus distance - 1cm
Total lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.8
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3" 3"
Display resolution 230k dots 460k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Display tech HyperCrystal LCD with AR(Anti-Reflective) coating TFT LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic (optional) None
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60s 15s
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/2000s
Continuous shutter rate 3.0fps 1.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range no built-in flash 4.40 m
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Fastest flash synchronize 1/180s -
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 1280x720
Video format Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 355 gr (0.78 pounds) 552 gr (1.22 pounds)
Dimensions 121 x 70 x 36mm (4.8" x 2.8" x 1.4") 124 x 84 x 92mm (4.9" x 3.3" x 3.6")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 56 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 21.5 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 10.4 not tested
DXO Low light score 505 not tested
Other
Battery life 300 images 380 images
Battery type Battery Pack AA
Battery model BLS-1 4 x AA
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 0r 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots One One
Price at release $799 $230