Olympus E-P3 vs Sony A580

In this write-up, we will be contrasting the Olympus E-P3 vs Sony A580, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by rivals Olympus and Sony. There is a crucial difference between the resolutions of the E-P3 (12MP) and A580 (16MP) and the E-P3 (Four Thirds) and A580 (APS-C) use different sensor dimensions.

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The E-P3 was brought out 3 months after the A580 so they are of a similar generation. Both of the cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-P3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A580 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before going straight into a thorough comparison, below is a concise view of how the E-P3 grades against the A580 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Following is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus PEN E-P3 and Sony Alpha DSLR-A580. The entire galleries are available at Olympus E-P3 Gallery and Sony A580 Gallery.

For anyone who is intending to travel with your camera frequently, you should consider its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-P3 provides outer measurements of 122mm x 69mm x 34mm (4.8" x 2.7" x 1.3") and a weight of 369 grams (0.81 lbs) whilst the Sony A580 has proportions of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") and a weight of 599 grams (1.32 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-P3 vs Sony A580 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you have at that time. The following is the front view proportions comparison of the E-P3 against the A580.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability score of the E-P3 and A580 is 86 and 64 respectively.

In many cases, it's difficult to picture the gap between sensor dimensions merely by checking a spec sheet. The image here may provide you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the E-P3 and A580.

As you can see, both the cameras offer different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The E-P3 featuring a tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field harder and the Sony A580 will give greater detail having its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will help you crop shots a little more aggressively.