Olympus PEN-F vs Panasonic LZ30

Its time to take a closer look at the Olympus PEN-F versus Panasonic LZ30, one is a Advanced Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a big gap among the resolutions of the PEN-F (20MP) and LZ30 (16MP) and the PEN-F (Four Thirds) and LZ30 (1/2.3") posses different sensor sizes.

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The PEN-F was unveiled 3 years after the LZ30 which is a fairly big gap as far as camera technology is concerned. The two cameras have different body design with the Olympus PEN-F being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Panasonic LZ30 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera.

Before going straight to a detailed comparison, here is a concise introduction of how the PEN-F matches up vs the LZ30 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Here is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus PEN-F and Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ30. The full galleries are viewable at Olympus PEN-F Gallery and Panasonic LZ30 Gallery.

If you are going to travel with your camera, you're going to have to think about its weight and dimensions. The Olympus PEN-F provides outer dimensions of 125mm x 72mm x 37mm (4.9" x 2.8" x 1.5") having a weight of 427 grams (0.94 lbs) whilst the Panasonic LZ30 has dimensions of 124mm x 84mm x 92mm (4.9" x 3.3" x 3.6") with a weight of 552 grams (1.22 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus PEN-F versus Panasonic LZ30 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary based on the lens you are working with at that moment. The following is a front view physical size comparison of the PEN-F and the LZ30.

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the PEN-F and LZ30 is 84 and 66 respectively.

Normally, it's difficult to visualize the gap in sensor dimensions only by seeing technical specs. The picture here might offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the PEN-F and LZ30.

As you have seen, both of the cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The PEN-F using its larger sensor is going to make shooting shallower DOF less difficult and the Olympus PEN-F will show extra detail having an extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also allow you to crop pics more aggressively. The more modern PEN-F provides an edge in sensor tech.