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Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5

Portability
88
Imaging
52
Features
72
Overall
60
Olympus PEN E-PL5 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH5 front
Portability
96
Imaging
39
Features
31
Overall
35

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL5
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 200 - 25600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 325g - 111 x 64 x 38mm
  • Revealed September 2012
Panasonic FH5
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-112mm (F3.1-6.5) lens
  • 121g - 94 x 54 x 19mm
  • Revealed January 2011
  • Also referred to as Lumix DMC-FS18
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Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5 Overview

Lets look more in depth at the Olympus E-PL5 and Panasonic FH5, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by rivals Olympus and Panasonic. The image resolution of the E-PL5 (16MP) and the FH5 (16MP) is pretty comparable but the E-PL5 (Four Thirds) and FH5 (1/2.3") provide different sensor size.

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The E-PL5 was unveiled 21 months after the FH5 which makes them a generation away from one another. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-PL5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic FH5 being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight to a step-by-step comparison, here is a brief summary of how the E-PL5 scores against the FH5 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL5 over the Panasonic FH5

 E-PL5 FH5 
RevealedSeptember 2012January 2011Newer by 21 months
Manually focus Very exact focus
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen dimensions3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution460k230kClearer screen (+230k dot)
Selfie screen Take selfies
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Panasonic FH5 over the Olympus E-PL5

 FH5 E-PL5 

Common features in the Olympus E-PL5 and Panasonic FH5

 E-PL5 FH5 

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5 Physical Comparison

When you are going to travel with your camera frequently, you will want to factor its weight and measurements. The Olympus E-PL5 enjoys external measurements of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") along with a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs) while the Panasonic FH5 has proportions of 94mm x 54mm x 19mm (3.7" x 2.1" x 0.7") along with a weight of 121 grams (0.27 lbs).

Examine the Olympus E-PL5 and Panasonic FH5 in our newest Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will differ depending on the lens you have attached at that time. Below is a front view overall size comparison of the E-PL5 versus the FH5.

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5 size comparison

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the E-PL5 and FH5 is 88 and 96 respectively.

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5 Sensor Comparison

More often than not, its difficult to imagine the gap in sensor dimensions merely by seeing technical specs. The image here will help give you a much better sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL5 and FH5.

As you can tell, each of the cameras provide the same megapixels albeit different sensor dimensions. The E-PL5 uses the bigger sensor which will make obtaining shallow depth of field less difficult. The fresher E-PL5 should have a benefit when it comes to sensor tech.

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus E-PL5
Portrait photography with Panasonic FH5
71
has manual focus
resolution is good (16MP)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
comes with face detect autofocus
exports RAW files
34
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
includes face detect focus
lack of manual focus
no manual exposure
can't use external flash
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
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Street Comparison

Olympus E-PL5 Street photography factors
Panasonic FH5 Street photography factors
85
tilting screen
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
exports RAW files
provides focus by touch
good high ISO (25,600)
67
image stabilization (Optical)
has touch to focus
lighter than competition in class (121 grams)
fixed screen
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Olympus E-PL5
Sports photography with Panasonic FH5
66
image stabilization (Sensor based)
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
comes with tracking focus
does not have phase detect autofocus
40
image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (16 megapixels)
includes tracking focus
painfully slow continuous shooting (4.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks phase detect auto focus
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-PL5
Travel photography with Panasonic FH5
75
provides focus by touch
resolution is good (16MP)
selfie friendly display
no Time Lapse mode
71
lighter than competition in class (121g)
has touch to focus
MP count decent (16MP)
flash built-in
rather wide (28mm)
doesn't have Timelapse function
doesn't contain selfie friendly screen
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL5 Landscape photography advice
Panasonic FH5 Landscape photography advice
74
has manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
resolution is good (16MP)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
good high ISO (25,600)
exports RAW files
no Time Lapse mode
38
rather wide (28mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
MP count decent (16MP)
lack of manual focus
cannot switch lenses (fixed lens mount)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
small screen (2.7 inches)
no manual exposure
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
lacks RAW support
doesn't have Timelapse function
Photography Glossary

Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Olympus E-PL5
Vlogging with Panasonic FH5
78
selfie friendly display
built-in touchscreen
image stabilization (Sensor based)
comes with face detect autofocus
good video quality (1920 x 1080 pxls)
no mic jack
33
rather wide (28mm)
image stabilization (Optical)
includes face detect focus
lighter than competition in class (121g)
sluggish maximum aperture (f3.1)
doesn't contain selfie friendly screen
low video resolution (1280 x 720 pixels)
doesn't have microphone jack
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Olympus E-PL5 vs Panasonic FH5 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL5 and Panasonic FH5
 Olympus PEN E-PL5Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH5
General Information
Company Olympus Panasonic
Model Olympus PEN E-PL5 Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH5
Also referred to as - Lumix DMC-FS18
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Revealed 2012-09-17 2011-01-05
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Chip - Venus Engine IV
Sensor type CMOS CCD
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 16 megapixels 16 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4608 x 3456 4608 x 3456
Max native ISO 25600 6400
Min native ISO 200 100
RAW support
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
Continuous autofocus
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
Autofocus selectice
Center weighted autofocus
Autofocus multi area
Live view autofocus
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Number of focus points 35 11
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds fixed lens
Lens focal range - 28-112mm (4.0x)
Max aperture - f/3.1-6.5
Macro focus distance - 5cm
Total lenses 107 -
Focal length multiplier 2.1 5.9
Screen
Screen type Tilting Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3 inches 2.7 inches
Screen resolution 460k dot 230k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic (optional) None
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60 secs 60 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/1600 secs
Continuous shooting speed 8.0fps 4.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set white balance
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash range 7.00 m (bundled FL-LM1) 3.30 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync, Manual (3 levels) Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/250 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30 fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video format MPEG-4, H.264, Motion JPEG Motion JPEG
Microphone input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 325 gr (0.72 lbs) 121 gr (0.27 lbs)
Physical dimensions 111 x 64 x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") 94 x 54 x 19mm (3.7" x 2.1" x 0.7")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 72 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 22.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 12.3 not tested
DXO Low light score 889 not tested
Other
Battery life 360 shots 260 shots
Battery format Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model BLS-5 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Internal
Storage slots 1 1
Pricing at launch $400 $169