Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic FZ28

Its time to take a more detailed look at the Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic FZ28, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by companies Olympus and Panasonic. The image resolution of the E-PL2 (12MP) and the FZ28 (10MP) is fairly well matched but the E-PL2 (Four Thirds) and FZ28 (1/2.3") have different sensor measurements.

Photography Glossary

The E-PL2 was brought out 2 years after the FZ28 which is quite a large gap as far as tech is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic FZ28 being a Compact camera.

Before diving straight to a in-depth comparison, here is a concise summation of how the E-PL2 grades versus the FZ28 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

This is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN E-PL2 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ28. The entire galleries are provided at Olympus E-PL2 Gallery and Panasonic FZ28 Gallery.

For those who are planning to travel with your camera often, you'll have to think about its weight and size. The Olympus E-PL2 comes with physical dimensions of 114mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") with a weight of 362 grams (0.80 lbs) and the Panasonic FZ28 has specifications of 118mm x 75mm x 89mm (4.6" x 3.0" x 3.5") along with a weight of 417 grams (0.92 lbs).

Take a look at the Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic FZ28 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you select during that time. Here is a front view over all size comparison of the E-PL2 versus the FZ28.

Considering size and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL2 and FZ28 is 85 and 72 respectively.

Generally, it can be difficult to visualize the difference between sensor dimensions just by looking at specs. The picture underneath will help offer you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-PL2 and FZ28.

All in all, both cameras have different megapixels and different sensor dimensions. The E-PL2 because of its larger sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF easier and the Olympus E-PL2 will resolve more detail having its extra 2 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop photos a bit more aggressively. The newer E-PL2 provides an edge in sensor innovation.