Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ47

Let's look much closer at the Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ47, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by rivals Olympus and Panasonic. The image resolution of the E-PL3 (12MP) and the FZ47 (12MP) is relatively well matched but the E-PL3 (Four Thirds) and FZ47 (1/2.3") boast different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PL3 was introduced 3 months later than the FZ47 so they are both of a similar age. Both of the cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic FZ47 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before getting into a thorough comparison, here is a quick view of how the E-PL3 scores vs the FZ47 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Olympus PEN E-PL3 & Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ47. The whole galleries are viewable at Olympus E-PL3 Gallery & Panasonic FZ47 Gallery.

For anyone who is looking to lug around your camera frequently, you will have to factor in its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-PL3 provides outside dimensions of 110mm x 64mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") with a weight of 313 grams (0.69 lbs) and the Panasonic FZ47 has proportions of 120mm x 80mm x 92mm (4.7" x 3.1" x 3.6") and a weight of 498 grams (1.10 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL3 vs Panasonic FZ47 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you select during that time. Underneath is a front view measurements comparison of the E-PL3 versus the FZ47.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the E-PL3 and FZ47 is 88 and 68 respectively.

Typically, it is very tough to visualize the contrast between sensor measurements only by looking at specifications. The photograph here may offer you a better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL3 and FZ47.

Plainly, both of these cameras come with the identical megapixel count albeit different sensor measurements. The E-PL3 includes the bigger sensor which is going to make achieving shallow DOF simpler.