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Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000

Portability
85
Imaging
52
Features
76
Overall
61
Olympus PEN E-P5 front
 
Sony Alpha a5000 front
Portability
89
Imaging
62
Features
62
Overall
62

Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000 Key Specs

Olympus E-P5
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 420g - 122 x 69 x 37mm
  • Announced October 2013
  • Superseded the Olympus E-P3
Sony a5000
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 16000
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 269g - 110 x 63 x 36mm
  • Released January 2014
  • Earlier Model is Sony NEX-3N
  • Later Model is Sony a5100
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Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000 Overview

On this page, we will be analyzing the Olympus E-P5 and Sony a5000, both Entry-Level Mirrorless digital cameras by brands Olympus and Sony. The image resolution of the E-P5 (16MP) and the a5000 (20MP) is relatively similar but the E-P5 (Four Thirds) and a5000 (APS-C) have different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The E-P5 was announced 3 months earlier than the a5000 so they are both of a similar age. Each of these cameras have the same body design (Rangefinder-style mirrorless).

Before delving straight to a complete comparison, here is a simple highlight of how the E-P5 matches up versus the a5000 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-P5 over the Sony a5000

 E-P5 a5000 
Screen resolution1037k461kSharper screen (+576k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Sony a5000 over the Olympus E-P5

 a5000 E-P5 

Common features in the Olympus E-P5 and Sony a5000

 E-P5 a5000 
ReleasedOctober 2013January 2014Similar age
Manually focus Very precise focus
Screen typeTiltingTiltingTilting screen
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen sizing
Selfie screen No selfie screen

Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000 Physical Comparison

If you are intending to lug around your camera regularly, you'll need to take into account its weight and volume. The Olympus E-P5 enjoys external dimensions of 122mm x 69mm x 37mm (4.8" x 2.7" x 1.5") with a weight of 420 grams (0.93 lbs) and the Sony a5000 has sizing of 110mm x 63mm x 36mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.4") accompanied by a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-P5 and Sony a5000 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you have chosen at that moment. Below is a front view measurement comparison of the E-P5 vs the a5000.

Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-P5 and a5000 is 85 and 89 respectively.

Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, it is very tough to visualize the difference between sensor measurements purely by going over technical specs. The visual here will help provide you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the E-P5 and a5000.

As you can tell, both cameras provide different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-P5 having a tinier sensor is going to make getting shallower depth of field trickier and the Sony a5000 will offer more detail with its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also allow you to crop shots more aggressively.

Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-P5 Portrait photography highlights
Sony a5000 Portrait photography highlights
71
focusing manually
high flash sync speed (1/320 seconds)
decent MP (16MP)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
has face detection focusing
delivers RAW formats
70
has manual focus
MP count decent (20 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
provides face detection focus
exports RAW formats
no external flash support
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-P5 Street photography features
Sony a5000 Street photography features
78
screen tilts up and down
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
offers touch to focus
great ISO range (25,600)
more heavy than competition in class (420g)
78
screen tilts up and down
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
no image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-P5 Sports photography highlights
Sony a5000 Sports photography highlights
67
maximum shutter speed is high (1/8,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent MP (16 megapixels)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
has tracking autofocus
lack of phase detect AF
59
MP count decent (20MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
provides tracking autofocus
better than average battery power (420 shots)
low frames per second (4.0 fps)
no image stabilization
lack of phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-P5 Travel photography highlights
Sony a5000 Travel photography highlights
68
offers touch to focus
decent MP (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
more heavy than competition in class (420 grams)
screen is not selfie friendly
78
better than average battery power (420 shots)
MP count decent (20 megapixels)
built-in flash
screen is not selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-P5 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony a5000 as a Landscape photography camera
79
focusing manually
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
decent MP (16MP)
nice sensor size (Four Thirds)
great ISO range (25,600)
delivers RAW formats
77
has manual focus
swap lenses (Sony E mount)
screen size is decent (3 inch)
MP count decent (20MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
better than average battery power (420 CIPA)
no image stabilization
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-P5 Vlogging advice
Sony a5000 Vlogging advice
33
screen is touchscreen
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
has face detection focusing
high res video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
screen is not selfie friendly
doesn't have external microphone support
more heavy than competition in class (420g)
32
provides face detection focus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
screen is not selfie friendly
no image stabilization
no external microphone socket
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Olympus E-P5 vs Sony a5000 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-P5 and Sony a5000
 Olympus PEN E-P5Sony Alpha a5000
General Information
Brand Olympus Sony
Model type Olympus PEN E-P5 Sony Alpha a5000
Type Entry-Level Mirrorless Entry-Level Mirrorless
Announced 2013-10-03 2014-01-07
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Chip - Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 23.2 x 15.4mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 357.3mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 20 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4608 x 3456 5456 x 3632
Max native ISO 25600 16000
Minimum native ISO 100 100
RAW format
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points 35 25
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds Sony E
Amount of lenses 107 121
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1.6
Screen
Screen type Tilting Tilting
Screen sizing 3" 3"
Resolution of screen 1,037 thousand dots 461 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Screen tech 3:2 LCD capacitive touchscreen TFT LCD with 180 upward tilt
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) None
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/8000 secs 1/4000 secs
Continuous shooting rate 9.0 frames per sec 4.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 7.00 m (ISO 100) 4.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync (1st or 2nd curtain), Manual (1/1 - 1/64) Flash off, Autoflash, Fill-flash, Rear Sync., Slow Sync., Red-eye reduction
External flash
AEB
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/320 secs 1/160 secs
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30p), 1280 x 720 (30p) 1920 x 1080 (60i/24p), 1440 x 1080 (25 fps), 640 x 480 (25 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video file format H.264 MPEG-4, AVCHD
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Built-In
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 420 grams (0.93 pounds) 269 grams (0.59 pounds)
Physical dimensions 122 x 69 x 37mm (4.8" x 2.7" x 1.5") 110 x 63 x 36mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.4")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 72 79
DXO Color Depth rating 22.8 23.8
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.4 13.0
DXO Low light rating 895 1089
Other
Battery life 330 photos 420 photos
Battery type Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID - NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 secs, custom)
Time lapse shooting With downloadable app
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo
Card slots 1 1
Launch pricing $389 $448