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Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5

Portability
86
Imaging
47
Features
42
Overall
45
Olympus PEN E-P2 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5 front
Portability
92
Imaging
35
Features
30
Overall
33

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5 Key Specs

Olympus E-P2
(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 April 2010
  • Succeeded the Olympus E-P1
  • Replacement is Olympus E-P3
Panasonic ZS5
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 25-300mm (F3.3-4.9) lens
  • 214g - 103 x 60 x 32mm
  • Launched June 2010
  • Also Known as Lumix DMC-TZ8
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Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5 Overview

Lets look a little more closely at the Olympus E-P2 and Panasonic ZS5, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by manufacturers Olympus and Panasonic. The sensor resolution of the E-P2 (12MP) and the ZS5 (12MP) is very well matched but the E-P2 (Four Thirds) and ZS5 (1/2.3") have totally different sensor size.

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The E-P2 was announced very close to the ZS5 and they are both of a similar age. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-P2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic ZS5 being a Compact camera.

Before getting into a detailed comparison, here is a brief summary of how the E-P2 scores vs the ZS5 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Photography Glossary
	
	

Reasons to pick Olympus E-P2 over the Panasonic ZS5

 E-P2 ZS5 
Manual focus Dial accurate focus
Display size3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")

Reasons to pick Panasonic ZS5 over the Olympus E-P2

 ZS5 E-P2 

Common features in the Olympus E-P2 and Panasonic ZS5

 E-P2 ZS5 
LaunchedApril 2010June 2010Similar age
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Display resolution230k230kIdentical display resolution
Selfie screen No selfie screen
Touch friendly display Neither comes with Touch friendly display

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5 Physical Comparison

In case you're planning to lug around your camera frequently, you will have to factor in its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-P2 comes with outer measurements of 121mm x 70mm x 36mm (4.8" x 2.8" x 1.4") along with a weight of 355 grams (0.78 lbs) and the Panasonic ZS5 has proportions of 103mm x 60mm x 32mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3") accompanied by a weight of 214 grams (0.47 lbs).

Check out the Olympus E-P2 and Panasonic ZS5 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you have attached during that time. Underneath is a front view scale comparison of the E-P2 vs the ZS5.

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5 size comparison

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-P2 and ZS5 is 86 and 92 respectively.

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it can be tough to visualise the gap between sensor measurements only by reading through a spec sheet. The photograph below will provide you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the E-P2 and ZS5.

As you can see, both of these cameras come with the identical megapixels but not the same sensor measurements. The E-P2 has the larger sensor which should make obtaining shallower DOF less difficult.

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-P2 Portrait photography factors
Panasonic ZS5 Portrait photography factors
60
you can focus manually
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers face detection autofocus
delivers RAW formats
sensor resolution low (12MP)
27
has face detection autofocus
lack of manual focus
can't use external flash
low MP (12MP)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-P2 as a Street photography camera
Panasonic ZS5 as a Street photography camera
74
image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
screen is fixed
61
has image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than average (214 grams)
fixed screen
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-P2
Sports photography with Panasonic ZS5
40
image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
max frames per second very slow (3.0 fps)
sensor resolution low (12MP)
terrible battery life (300 CIPA)
lacks phase detect autofocus
31
has image stabilization (Optical)
has tracking autofocus
low maximum shutter speed (1/1,300 seconds)
max fps low (2.0 frames/s)
low MP (12MP)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-P2 Travel photography highlights
Panasonic ZS5 Travel photography highlights
43
missing Time Lapse function
terrible battery life (300 shots)
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
display is not selfie friendly
63
lighter than average (214g)
has built in flash
pretty wide (25mm)
long reach (300mm)
missing Time Lapse function
low MP (12MP)
doesn't posses selfie friendly screen
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-P2 Landscape photography advice
Panasonic ZS5 Landscape photography advice
60
you can focus manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3 inches)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
terrible battery life (300 per charge)
missing Time Lapse function
33
pretty wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
lack of manual focus
can't swap lenses (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
tiny screen (2.7 inch)
low MP (12 megapixels)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW format
missing Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-P2 Vlogging advice
Panasonic ZS5 Vlogging advice
29
image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection autofocus
display is not selfie friendly
video quality not great (1280 x 720 resolution)
missing external mic support
31
pretty wide (25mm)
has image stabilization (Optical)
has face detection autofocus
lighter than average (214 grams)
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
doesn't posses selfie friendly screen
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pxls)
missing external mic socket
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Olympus E-P2 vs Panasonic ZS5 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-P2 and Panasonic ZS5
 Olympus PEN E-P2Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus PEN E-P2 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5
Other name - Lumix DMC-TZ8
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Released 2010-04-22 2010-06-16
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic V Venus Engine HD II
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixel 12 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 4032 x 3024 4000 x 3000
Highest native ISO 6400 6400
Min native ISO 100 80
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 11 11
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 25-300mm (12.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.3-4.9
Macro focusing distance - 3cm
Number of lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.9
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3 inches 2.7 inches
Screen resolution 230 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Screen technology HyperCrystal LCD with AR(Anti-Reflective) coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 seconds 60 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/1300 seconds
Continuous shooting rate 3.0 frames per second 2.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance no built-in flash 5.30 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-eye, Slow Syncro
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize 1/180 seconds -
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 (30fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Highest video resolution 1280x720 1280x720
Video format Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Mic 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
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 355 gr (0.78 lb) 214 gr (0.47 lb)
Physical dimensions 121 x 70 x 36mm (4.8" x 2.8" x 1.4") 103 x 60 x 32mm (4.1" x 2.4" x 1.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 56 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 21.5 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.4 not tested
DXO Low light rating 505 not tested
Other
Battery life 300 photographs -
Type of battery Battery Pack -
Battery ID BLS-1 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC card SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Card slots One One
Launch cost $799 $300