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Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3

Portability
88
Imaging
48
Features
52
Overall
49
Olympus PEN E-PL3 front
 
Pentax K-3 front
Portability
59
Imaging
65
Features
85
Overall
73

Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL3
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 12800
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 313g - 110 x 64 x 37mm
  • Launched September 2011
  • Replaced the Olympus E-PL2
Pentax K-3
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3.2" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 51200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 800g - 131 x 100 x 77mm
  • Introduced April 2014
  • Updated by Pentax K-3 II
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Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3 Overview

Let's look a bit more in depth at the Olympus E-PL3 and Pentax K-3, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. There exists a crucial gap among the resolutions of the E-PL3 (12MP) and K-3 (24MP) and the E-PL3 (Four Thirds) and K-3 (APS-C) posses different sensor sizing.

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The E-PL3 was released 3 years earlier than the K-3 and that is a fairly serious gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax K-3 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before delving into a comprehensive comparison, here is a brief summation of how the E-PL3 grades vs the K-3 for portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL3 over the Pentax K-3

 E-PL3 K-3 
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen

Reasons to pick Pentax K-3 over the Olympus E-PL3

 K-3 E-PL3 
IntroducedApril 2014September 2011Fresher by 31 months
Screen dimensions3.2"3"Bigger screen (+0.2")
Screen resolution1037k460kSharper screen (+577k dot)

Common features in the Olympus E-PL3 and Pentax K-3

 E-PL3 K-3 
Manually focus Very accurate focusing
Selfie screen No selfie screen
Touch friendly screen No Touch friendly screen

Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3 Physical Comparison

For those who are intending to carry your camera regularly, you need to factor its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL3 offers outer dimensions of 110mm x 64mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") accompanied by a weight of 313 grams (0.69 lbs) and the Pentax K-3 has dimensions of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") and a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

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

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you are working with at the time. Following is a front view overall size comparison of the E-PL3 vs the K-3.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3 size comparison

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL3 and K-3 is 88 and 59 respectively.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3 Sensor Comparison

Quite often, its difficult to picture the gap in sensor sizing purely by seeing specs. The graphic here will provide you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL3 and K-3.

All in all, each of these cameras have different megapixels and different sensor sizing. The E-PL3 featuring a smaller sensor is going to make shooting shallow depth of field more difficult and the Pentax K-3 will show extra detail as a result of its extra 12 Megapixels. Higher resolution will allow you to crop pictures a bit more aggressively. The older E-PL3 will be disadvantaged in sensor innovation.

Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Portrait photography features
Pentax K-3 Portrait photography features
60
manual focus
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
includes face detect autofocus
supports RAW files
sensor resolution low (12MP)
79
has manual focus
MP count decent (24MP)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
includes face detect focusing
exports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Street photography details
Pentax K-3 Street photography details
84
screen tilts up and down
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
69
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
environment proofing
great high ISO (51,200)
screen is fixed
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Sports photography advice
Pentax K-3 Sports photography advice
45
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
includes tracking focus
continuous shooting slow (6.0 frames per second)
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
terrible battery pack (300 per charge)
does not have phase detect autofocus
76
great max shutter speed (1/8,000s)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count decent (24 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
includes tracking focus
environment proofing
has phase detect AF
terrible battery power (560 shots)
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Travel Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 as a Travel photography camera
Pentax K-3 as a Travel photography camera
44
lack of Time Lapse recording
terrible battery pack (300 CIPA)
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
screen isn't selfie friendly
60
environment proofing
MP count decent (24 megapixels)
built-in flash
terrible battery power (560 per charge)
doesn't posses selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Landscape photography advice
Pentax K-3 Landscape photography advice
61
manual focus
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
supports RAW files
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
terrible battery pack (300 per charge)
lack of Time Lapse recording
77
has manual focus
change lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
pretty good screen size (3.2 inches)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
MP count decent (24 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (APS-C)
does not have low pass filter
great high ISO (51,200)
exports RAW formats
environment proofing
2 card slots
terrible battery power (560 shots)
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL3 Vlogging highlights
Pentax K-3 Vlogging highlights
34
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
includes face detect autofocus
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
screen isn't selfie friendly
lack of mic port
34
image stabilization (Sensor based)
includes face detect focusing
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
has microphone support
doesn't posses selfie friendly screen
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Olympus E-PL3 vs Pentax K-3 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL3 and Pentax K-3
 Olympus PEN E-PL3Pentax K-3
General Information
Manufacturer Olympus Pentax
Model type Olympus PEN E-PL3 Pentax K-3
Category Entry-Level Mirrorless Advanced DSLR
Launched 2011-09-20 2014-04-10
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Processor Truepic VI Prime III
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 24 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 3:2
Maximum resolution 4032 x 3024 6016 x 4000
Maximum native ISO 12800 51200
Lowest native ISO 200 100
RAW images
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Autofocus touch
Autofocus continuous
Autofocus single
Tracking autofocus
Autofocus selectice
Center weighted autofocus
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Total focus points 35 27
Cross type focus points - 25
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds Pentax KAF2
Available lenses 107 151
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1.5
Screen
Type of screen Tilting Fixed Type
Screen diagonal 3 inch 3.2 inch
Resolution of screen 460k dots 1,037k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch screen
Screen tech HyperCrystal LCD AR(Anti-Reflective) coating TFT LCD monitor
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic (optional) Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.64x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/8000 secs
Continuous shooting rate 6.0 frames/s 8.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Expose Manually
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance no built-in flash 13.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, on, off, red-eye, slow sync, slow sync + red-eye, trailing curtain sync, high speed, wireless, manual
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/160 secs 1/180 secs
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60i, 50i, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p)
Maximum video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video file format AVCHD, Motion JPEG MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 3.0 (5 GBit/sec)
GPS None Optional
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 313g (0.69 lb) 800g (1.76 lb)
Physical dimensions 110 x 64 x 37mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.5") 131 x 100 x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 52 80
DXO Color Depth rating 20.9 23.7
DXO Dynamic range rating 10.3 13.4
DXO Low light rating 499 1216
Other
Battery life 300 photos 560 photos
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLS-5 D-LI90
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots Single Dual
Launch cost $399 $639