Olympus E-PL5 vs Pentax K-5 II

Following is a thorough comparison of the Olympus E-PL5 vs Pentax K-5 II, former is a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Advanced DSLR by companies Olympus and Pentax. The sensor resolution of the E-PL5 (16MP) and the K-5 II (16MP) is pretty well matched but the E-PL5 (Four Thirds) and K-5 II (APS-C) possess totally different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The E-PL5 was unveiled 8 months before the K-5 II and they are of a similar age. Both cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax K-5 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before getting through a more detailed comparison, below is a concise summary of how the E-PL5 scores vs the K-5 II with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

This is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus PEN E-PL5 & Pentax K-5 II. The full galleries are available at Olympus E-PL5 Gallery & Pentax K-5 II Gallery.

When you are looking to carry around your camera often, you need to factor in its weight and proportions. The Olympus E-PL5 offers external measurements of 111mm x 64mm x 38mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.5") with a weight of 325 grams (0.72 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-5 II has measurements of 131mm x 97mm x 73mm (5.2" x 3.8" x 2.9") with a weight of 760 grams (1.68 lbs).

See the Olympus E-PL5 vs Pentax K-5 II in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you have at that moment. Following is the front view physical size comparison of the E-PL5 against the K-5 II.

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the E-PL5 and K-5 II is 88 and 60 respectively.

Usually, it's difficult to visualise the contrast between sensor sizes just by looking at specs. The pic here will give you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the E-PL5 and K-5 II.

As you can plainly see, the two cameras have got the exact same resolution albeit not the same sensor sizes. The E-PL5 comes with the tinier sensor which should make getting shallow DOF harder. The more aged E-PL5 is going to be behind in sensor technology.