Olympus E-PL7 vs Pentax K-5

Let's take a closer look at the Olympus E-PL7 vs Pentax K-5, one is a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by manufacturers Olympus and Pentax. The sensor resolution of the E-PL7 (16MP) and the K-5 (16MP) is pretty comparable but the E-PL7 (Four Thirds) and K-5 (APS-C) possess different sensor sizing.

Photography Glossary

The E-PL7 was revealed 3 years after the K-5 which is a fairly big gap as far as camera tech is concerned. The two cameras come with different body type with the Olympus E-PL7 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax K-5 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before diving through a thorough comparison, below is a concise highlight of how the E-PL7 scores versus the K-5 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Following is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus PEN E-PL7 and Pentax K-5. The full galleries are available at Olympus E-PL7 Gallery and Pentax K-5 Gallery.

If you're planning to carry around your camera often, you need to take into account its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PL7 provides outer dimensions of 115mm x 67mm x 38mm (4.5" x 2.6" x 1.5") having a weight of 357 grams (0.79 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-5 has dimensions of 131mm x 97mm x 73mm (5.2" x 3.8" x 2.9") having a weight of 740 grams (1.63 lbs).

Look at the Olympus E-PL7 vs Pentax K-5 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are utilising at the time. Here is the front view overall size comparison of the E-PL7 and the K-5.

Using size and weight, the portability score of the E-PL7 and K-5 is 86 and 60 respectively.

Often, it's difficult to imagine the gap in sensor sizes only by going through a spec sheet. The picture underneath may offer you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the E-PL7 and K-5.

As you can see, both the cameras posses the exact same MP albeit different sensor sizes. The E-PL7 has got the smaller sensor which is going to make achieving shallow DOF more challenging. The more recent E-PL7 provides an advantage when it comes to sensor technology.