Olympus E-PL1 vs Pentax K-5 II

Below, we are contrasting the Olympus E-PL1 and Pentax K-5 II, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Advanced DSLR by brands Olympus and Pentax. There exists a crucial gap among the sensor resolutions of the E-PL1 (12MP) and K-5 II (16MP) and the E-PL1 (Four Thirds) and K-5 II (APS-C) use different sensor measurements.

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The E-PL1 was unveiled 4 years earlier than the K-5 II and that is a fairly serious gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of these cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax K-5 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before delving straight into a in-depth comparison, below is a simple overview of how the E-PL1 matches up vs the K-5 II in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL1 and Pentax K-5 II. The full galleries are provided at Olympus E-PL1 Gallery and Pentax K-5 II Gallery.

In case you're planning to lug around your camera frequently, you're going to have to consider its weight and size. The Olympus E-PL1 features external dimensions of 115mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") accompanied by a weight of 334 grams (0.74 lbs) and the Pentax K-5 II has specifications of 131mm x 97mm x 73mm (5.2" x 3.8" x 2.9") and a weight of 760 grams (1.68 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-PL1 and Pentax K-5 II in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary based on the lens you are employing at the time. Underneath is the front view size comparison of the E-PL1 versus the K-5 II.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL1 and K-5 II is 86 and 60 respectively.

More often than not, it's hard to visualize the gap in sensor measurements simply by researching specs. The photograph here may offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL1 and K-5 II.

As you can plainly see, both of these cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-PL1 having a smaller sensor is going to make shooting shallow depth of field more challenging and the Pentax K-5 II will render greater detail having an extra 4MP. Greater resolution can also let you crop pics much more aggressively. The older E-PL1 will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.