Olympus E-PL3 vs Olympus SH-3

The following is a in depth overview of the Olympus E-PL3 and Olympus SH-3, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom and both of them are produced by Olympus. There exists a huge gap between the sensor resolutions of the E-PL3 (12MP) and SH-3 (16MP) and the E-PL3 (Four Thirds) and SH-3 (1/2.3") use totally different sensor sizes.

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The E-PL3 was announced 5 years prior to the SH-3 which is quite a significant gap as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Olympus SH-3 being a Compact camera.

Before delving through a detailed comparison, below is a short summary of how the E-PL3 grades vs the SH-3 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus PEN E-PL3 and Olympus Stylus SH-3. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-PL3 Gallery and Olympus SH-3 Gallery.

If you're going to travel with your camera frequently, you will want to think about its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-PL3 comes with physical measurements of 110mm x 64mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") and a weight of 313 grams (0.69 lbs) and the Olympus SH-3 has proportions of 109mm x 63mm x 42mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.7") along with a weight of 271 grams (0.60 lbs).

Check the Olympus E-PL3 and Olympus SH-3 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are working with at that moment. Here is the front view over all size comparison of the E-PL3 and the SH-3.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL3 and SH-3 is 88 and 88 respectively.

Typically, it can be hard to envision the difference between sensor dimensions simply by checking a spec sheet. The pic below should offer you a stronger sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL3 and SH-3.

As you can see, both cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The E-PL3 using its bigger sensor will make getting bokeh easier and the Olympus SH-3 will resolve more detail with its extra 4MP. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop photographs somewhat more aggressively. The more aged E-PL3 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor tech.