Olympus E-P3 vs Panasonic ZS45

Its time to look a little more closely at the Olympus E-P3 and Panasonic ZS45, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a crucial gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-P3 (12MP) and ZS45 (16MP) and the E-P3 (Four Thirds) and ZS45 (1/2.3") have different sensor dimensions.

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The E-P3 was manufactured 4 years earlier than the ZS45 and that is quite a serious gap as far as technology is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-P3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic ZS45 being a Compact camera.

Before we go straight to a comprehensive comparison, here is a concise overview of how the E-P3 matches up versus the ZS45 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Following is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus PEN E-P3 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS45. The entire galleries are viewable at Olympus E-P3 Gallery and Panasonic ZS45 Gallery.

For those who are going to carry your camera often, you will want to factor its weight and volume. The Olympus E-P3 comes with exterior measurements of 122mm x 69mm x 34mm (4.8" x 2.7" x 1.3") along with a weight of 369 grams (0.81 lbs) whilst the Panasonic ZS45 has sizing of 108mm x 60mm x 32mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.3") along with a weight of 249 grams (0.55 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-P3 and Panasonic ZS45 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you are utilizing at that moment. Underneath is a front view size comparison of the E-P3 vs the ZS45.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-P3 and ZS45 is 86 and 91 respectively.

Typically, its difficult to imagine the gap between sensor sizing just by going over technical specs. The graphic underneath will help provide you a clearer sense of the sensor measurements in the E-P3 and ZS45.

As you can tell, both of the cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The E-P3 featuring a larger sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF easier and the Panasonic ZS45 will offer greater detail due to its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will also let you crop pics a bit more aggressively. The older E-P3 is going to be behind in sensor innovation.