Olympus E-PM2 vs Sony A9 II

In this write-up, we will be evaluating the Olympus E-PM2 and Sony A9 II, former being a Entry-Level Mirrorless while the latter is a Pro Mirrorless by companies Olympus and Sony. There exists a large gap between the image resolutions of the E-PM2 (16MP) and A9 II (24MP) and the E-PM2 (Four Thirds) and A9 II (Full frame) use totally different sensor dimensions.

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The E-PM2 was revealed 7 years before the A9 II and that is quite a serious difference as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras offer different body type with the Olympus E-PM2 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony A9 II being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight into a step-by-step comparison, below is a quick overview of how the E-PM2 scores vs the A9 II with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

The following is a preview of the gallery images for Olympus PEN E-PM2 & Sony Alpha A9 Mark II. The full galleries are provided at Olympus E-PM2 Gallery & Sony A9 II Gallery.

If you're intending to lug around your camera often, you have to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Olympus E-PM2 has got physical dimensions of 110mm x 64mm x 34mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.3") and a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs) and the Sony A9 II has dimensions of 129mm x 96mm x 76mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 3.0") accompanied by a weight of 678 grams (1.49 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus E-PM2 and Sony A9 II in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you are using during that time. Following is the front view physical size comparison of the E-PM2 against the A9 II.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-PM2 and A9 II is 89 and 62 respectively.

Sometimes, its hard to visualise the gap between sensor measurements just by checking a spec sheet. The visual underneath will help give you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the E-PM2 and A9 II.

Clearly, the two cameras offer different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The E-PM2 using its tinier sensor will make achieving shallow DOF tougher and the Sony A9 II will give greater detail because of its extra 8 Megapixels. Higher resolution will make it easier to crop pictures a little more aggressively. The older E-PM2 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor technology.