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Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45

Portability
85
Imaging
48
Features
47
Overall
47
Olympus PEN E-PL2 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS45 front
Portability
91
Imaging
41
Features
55
Overall
46

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL2
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 362g - 114 x 72 x 42mm
  • Released February 2011
  • Older Model is Olympus E-PL1s
  • Successor is Olympus E-PL3
Panasonic ZS45
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 24-480mm (F3.3-6.4) lens
  • 249g - 108 x 60 x 32mm
  • Released January 2015
  • Additionally Known as Lumix DMC-TZ57
  • Earlier Model is Panasonic ZS40
  • Refreshed by Panasonic ZS50
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Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 Overview

Below is a in-depth overview of the Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by companies Olympus and Panasonic. There is a noticeable difference between the sensor resolutions of the E-PL2 (12MP) and ZS45 (16MP) and the E-PL2 (Four Thirds) and ZS45 (1/2.3") feature totally different sensor measurements.

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The E-PL2 was launched 4 years prior to the ZS45 and that is quite a sizable difference as far as tech is concerned. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic ZS45 being a Compact camera.

Before diving through a more detailed comparison, below is a brief summation of how the E-PL2 scores vs the ZS45 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL2 over the Panasonic ZS45

 E-PL2 ZS45 
Manually focus Very precise focusing

Reasons to pick Panasonic ZS45 over the Olympus E-PL2

 ZS45 E-PL2 
ReleasedJanuary 2015February 2011More recent by 47 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution1040k460kClearer screen (+580k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-PL2 and Panasonic ZS45

 E-PL2 ZS45 
Screen dimension3"3"Identical screen measurements
Selfie screen Neither offers selfie screen
Touch friendly screen Neither offers Touch friendly screen

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 Physical Comparison

If you're intending to lug around your camera, you have to consider its weight and volume. The Olympus E-PL2 offers exterior dimensions of 114mm x 72mm x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") and a weight of 362 grams (0.80 lbs) whilst the Panasonic ZS45 has sizing of 108mm x 60mm x 32mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.3") accompanied by a weight of 249 grams (0.55 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Bear in mind, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you are utilising at the time. Following is the front view physical size comparison of the E-PL2 compared to the ZS45.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 size comparison

Considering size and weight, the portability score of the E-PL2 and ZS45 is 85 and 91 respectively.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 Sensor Comparison

Generally, it is hard to visualise the contrast between sensor measurements merely by reviewing specs. The visual here will help give you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL2 and ZS45.

As you can plainly see, both of these cameras have got different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The E-PL2 due to its bigger sensor will make shooting bokeh less difficult and the Panasonic ZS45 will deliver more detail utilizing its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also enable you to crop pictures much more aggressively. The older E-PL2 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Portrait photography advice
Panasonic ZS45 Portrait photography advice
60
has manual focus
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes face detection focusing
exports RAW files
low resolution (12MP)
37
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
has face detect focusing
no manual focus
cannot use external flash
small sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Street photography info
Panasonic ZS45 Street photography info
73
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
fixed screen
69
screen tilts
image stabilization (Optical)
lighter than competition in class (249g)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Sports photography info
Panasonic ZS45 Sports photography info
45
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
includes tracking autofocus
max fps very slow (3.0 fps)
low resolution (12MP)
not so great battery power (280 per charge)
no phase detect AF
56
incredible zoom range (24-480mm 20.0 x zoom)
image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
has tracking focus
better than average battery power (350 shots)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 as a Travel photography camera
Panasonic ZS45 as a Travel photography camera
51
has built in flash
missing Timelapse mode
not so great battery power (280 CIPA)
low resolution (12MP)
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
71
better than average battery power (350 shots)
lighter than competition in class (249 grams)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
built-in flash
pretty wide (24mm)
very long reach (480mm)
no Timelapse function
doesn't contain selfie friendly screen
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Olympus E-PL2
Landscape photography with Panasonic ZS45
61
has manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
low resolution (12 megapixels)
not so great battery power (280 CIPA)
missing Timelapse mode
48
pretty wide (24mm)
nice screen size (3")
image stabilization (Optical)
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
better than average battery power (350 per charge)
no manual focus
can't swap lenses (fixed lens mount)
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
small sensor size (1/2.3")
doesn't have RAW support
no Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL2 Vlogging advice
Panasonic ZS45 Vlogging advice
29
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
includes face detection focusing
doesn't feature selfie friendly display
low video resolution (1280 x 720 resolution)
missing external microphone jack
34
pretty wide (24mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
has face detect focusing
good video quality (1920 x 1080 pxls)
lighter than competition in class (249 grams)
sluggish max aperture (f3.3)
doesn't contain selfie friendly screen
no microphone port
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Olympus E-PL2 vs Panasonic ZS45 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL2 and Panasonic ZS45
 Olympus PEN E-PL2Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS45
General Information
Make Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus PEN E-PL2 Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS45
Also called as - Lumix DMC-TZ57
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Superzoom
Released 2011-02-11 2015-01-06
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip Truepic V -
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 6.08 x 4.56mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 27.7mm²
Sensor resolution 12MP 16MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4032 x 3024 4608 x 3456
Max native ISO 6400 6400
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW format
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Total focus points 11 21
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 24-480mm (20.0x)
Maximal aperture - f/3.3-6.4
Macro focusing range - 3cm
Total lenses 107 -
Crop factor 2.1 5.9
Screen
Range of screen Fixed Type Tilting
Screen size 3" 3"
Resolution of screen 460 thousand dot 1,040 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Screen tech HyperCrystal LCD AR(Anti-Reflective) coating -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic (optional) None
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60s 4s
Highest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/2000s
Continuous shooting speed 3.0 frames per sec 10.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 10.00 m 6.00 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, Auto/Red-eye Reduction, Forced On, Slow Sync./Red-eye Reduction, Forced Off
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Highest flash sync 1/160s -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (30p), 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30p)
Max video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video data format Motion JPEG MPEG-4
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 362 gr (0.80 lb) 249 gr (0.55 lb)
Dimensions 114 x 72 x 42mm (4.5" x 2.8" x 1.7") 108 x 60 x 32mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 55 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 21.4 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.2 not tested
DXO Low light rating 573 not tested
Other
Battery life 280 pictures 350 pictures
Battery form Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLS-5 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Storage media SD/SDHC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots One One
Price at launch $0 $300