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Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2

Portability
86
Imaging
53
Features
81
Overall
64
Olympus PEN E-PL7 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2 front
Portability
70
Imaging
51
Features
65
Overall
56

Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2 Key Specs

Olympus E-PL7
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 357g - 115 x 67 x 38mm
  • Launched September 2014
  • Superseded the Olympus E-PL6
  • New Model is Olympus E-PL8
Panasonic GH2
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 160 - 12800
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 442g - 124 x 90 x 76mm
  • Released March 2011
  • Superseded the Panasonic GH1
  • Updated by Panasonic GH3
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Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2 Overview

Lets take a deeper look at the Olympus E-PL7 and Panasonic GH2, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Advanced Mirrorless by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. The image resolution of the E-PL7 (16MP) and the GH2 (16MP) is relatively close and both cameras provide the identical sensor sizing (Four Thirds).

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The E-PL7 was announced 3 years later than the GH2 and that is a fairly serious gap as far as camera technology is concerned. The two cameras feature different body design with the Olympus E-PL7 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic GH2 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before diving straight to a thorough comparison, here is a short view of how the E-PL7 grades against the GH2 for portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Olympus E-PL7 over the Panasonic GH2

 E-PL7 GH2 
ReleasedSeptember 2014March 2011Fresher by 42 months
Screen resolution1037k460kCrisper screen (+577k dot)

Reasons to pick Panasonic GH2 over the Olympus E-PL7

 GH2 E-PL7 
Screen typeFully ArticulatedTiltingFully Articulating screen

Common features in the Olympus E-PL7 and Panasonic GH2

 E-PL7 GH2 
Focus manually More accurate focus
Screen size3"3"Same screen measurement
Selfie screen Both good for selfies
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2 Physical Comparison

When you are going to carry your camera often, you will have to think about its weight and volume. The Olympus E-PL7 enjoys exterior dimensions of 115mm x 67mm x 38mm (4.5" x 2.6" x 1.5") and a weight of 357 grams (0.79 lbs) whilst the Panasonic GH2 has sizing of 124mm x 90mm x 76mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 3.0") accompanied by a weight of 442 grams (0.97 lbs).

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Keep in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you are using at the time. The following is a front view over all size comparison of the E-PL7 versus the GH2.

Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PL7 and GH2 is 86 and 70 respectively.

Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2 top view buttons comparison

Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2 Sensor Comparison

Typically, its hard to visualise the gap in sensor sizing simply by looking through a spec sheet. The visual below will help give you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL7 and GH2.

Clearly, both of these cameras come with the identical sensor size and the same MP and you should expect comparable quality of files but you will need to take the release date of the cameras into account. The fresher E-PL7 will have a benefit in sensor technology.

Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2 sensor size comparison

Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus E-PL7 Portrait photography factors
Panasonic GH2 Portrait photography factors
71
focusing manually
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers face detection autofocus
saves RAW files
70
manual focus
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
has face detection focusing
saves RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Olympus E-PL7
Street photography with Panasonic GH2
84
tilting screen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
has focus by touch
great ISO range (25,600)
68
screen can move to multiple angles
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
does not have image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Olympus E-PL7 Sports photography features
Panasonic GH2 Sports photography features
66
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
offers tracking autofocus
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
46
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
has tracking autofocus
continuous shooting slow (3.0 frames/s)
does not have image stabilization
bad battery (330 shots)
lack of phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Travel photography with Olympus E-PL7
Travel photography with Panasonic GH2
85
has focus by touch
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
screen is selfie friendly
62
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
has built in flash
selfie friendly screen
does not have Time Lapse function
bad battery (330 shots)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus E-PL7 Landscape photography highlights
Panasonic GH2 Landscape photography highlights
79
focusing manually
change lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
nice screen size (3 inches)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
great ISO range (25,600)
saves RAW files
60
manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a decent size (3 inch)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
does not have image stabilization
bad battery (330 per charge)
does not have Time Lapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus E-PL7 Vlogging info
Panasonic GH2 Vlogging info
78
screen is selfie friendly
screen is touchscreen
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection autofocus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
missing external microphone support
71
selfie friendly screen
screen is touchscreen
has face detection focusing
high res video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
includes external mic socket
does not have image stabilization
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Olympus E-PL7 vs Panasonic GH2 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus E-PL7 and Panasonic GH2
 Olympus PEN E-PL7Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2
General Information
Brand Name Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus PEN E-PL7 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Advanced Mirrorless
Launched 2014-09-01 2011-03-23
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Chip TruePic VII Venus Engine FHD
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds Four Thirds
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixels 16 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4608 x 3456 4608 x 3456
Max native ISO 25600 12800
Min native ISO 100 160
RAW images
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
AF continuous
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 81 23
Lens
Lens support Micro Four Thirds Micro Four Thirds
Amount of lenses 107 107
Crop factor 2.1 2.1
Screen
Screen type Tilting Fully Articulated
Screen size 3 inch 3 inch
Resolution of screen 1,037k dots 460k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Screen technology - TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic (optional) Electronic
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.71x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60s 60s
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000s 1/4000s
Continuous shooting rate 8.0 frames/s 3.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance no built-in flash 15.60 m
Flash settings no built-in flash Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync
External flash
AEB
WB bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize - 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30p), 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (24, 30, 60fps) 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30fps), 320 x 240 (30fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video format H.264, Motion JPEG AVCHD, Motion JPEG
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 357g (0.79 pounds) 442g (0.97 pounds)
Physical dimensions 115 x 67 x 38mm (4.5" x 2.6" x 1.5") 124 x 90 x 76mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating 72 60
DXO Color Depth rating 22.7 21.2
DXO Dynamic range rating 12.4 11.3
DXO Low light rating 873 655
Other
Battery life 350 images 330 images
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID BLS-50 -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC card SD/SDHC/SDXC
Card slots Single Single
Cost at launch $499 $1,000