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Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1

Portability
88
Imaging
40
Features
48
Overall
43
Olympus SH-50 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 front
Portability
85
Imaging
47
Features
47
Overall
47

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1 Key Specs

Olympus SH-50
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • 25-600mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
  • 269g - 112 x 63 x 42mm
  • Revealed January 2013
Panasonic GF1
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 385g - 119 x 71 x 36mm
  • Launched October 2009
  • New Model is Panasonic GF2
Photography Glossary

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1 Overview

Lets look more in depth at the Olympus SH-50 and Panasonic GF1, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by brands Olympus and Panasonic. There is a crucial difference among the image resolutions of the SH-50 (16MP) and GF1 (12MP) and the SH-50 (1/2.3") and GF1 (Four Thirds) posses different sensor measurements.

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The SH-50 was unveiled 3 years later than the GF1 and that is a fairly serious gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus SH-50 being a Compact camera and the Panasonic GF1 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before diving right into a step-by-step comparison, here is a brief summation of how the SH-50 scores versus the GF1 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SH-50 over the Panasonic GF1

 SH-50 GF1 
LaunchedJanuary 2013October 2009More recent by 40 months
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Panasonic GF1 over the Olympus SH-50

 GF1 SH-50 

Common features in the Olympus SH-50 and Panasonic GF1

 SH-50 GF1 
Focus manually More exact focus
Screen typeFixed Fixed Fixed screen
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen measurements
Screen resolution460k460kExact same screen resolution
Selfie screen Lacking selfie screen

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1 Physical Comparison

For anybody who is planning to lug around your camera regularly, you should factor in its weight and proportions. The Olympus SH-50 provides outside dimensions of 112mm x 63mm x 42mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.7") accompanied by a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs) while the Panasonic GF1 has measurements of 119mm x 71mm x 36mm (4.7" x 2.8" x 1.4") with a weight of 385 grams (0.85 lbs).

Contrast the Olympus SH-50 and Panasonic GF1 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you are working with at that time. Below is a front view scale comparison of the SH-50 and the GF1.

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1 size comparison

Factoring in size and weight, the portability grade of the SH-50 and GF1 is 88 and 85 respectively.

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1 Sensor Comparison

Often, it is very difficult to picture the contrast in sensor measurements merely by checking out a spec sheet. The graphic below will help provide you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the SH-50 and GF1.

As you can see, the two cameras provide different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The SH-50 with its smaller sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF tougher and the Olympus SH-50 will produce extra detail having an extra 4MP. Higher resolution will also help you crop shots more aggressively. The more recent SH-50 should have a benefit in sensor technology.

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1 sensor size comparison

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus SH-50 Portrait photography info
Panasonic GF1 Portrait photography info
44
focusing manually
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
has face detect autofocus
can't use external flash
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
60
manual focus
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
features face detection focusing
delivers RAW formats
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
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Street Comparison

Olympus SH-50 Street photography details
Panasonic GF1 Street photography details
64
built in image stabilization (Optical)
supports touch focus
lighter than average in class (269 grams)
screen does not articulate
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
64
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
no articulating screen
does not have image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SH-50 Sports photography advice
Panasonic GF1 Sports photography advice
48
long zoom range (25-600mm 24.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
has tracking focus
no shutter priority
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect autofocus
44
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
features tracking autofocus
good battery life (380 CIPA)
slow frames per second (3.0 frames per second)
does not have image stabilization
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
does not have phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SH-50 Travel photography highlights
Panasonic GF1 Travel photography highlights
69
lighter than average in class (269 grams)
supports touch focus
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
built-in flash
really wide (25mm)
very long zoom (600mm)
lack of Timelapse function
screen isn't selfie friendly
slow max aperture (f3.0)
59
good battery life (380 shots)
has built in flash
does not have Timelapse function
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
does not have a selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SH-50 Landscape photography factors
Panasonic GF1 Landscape photography factors
49
focusing manually
really wide (25mm)
decent sized screen (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Optical)
decent sensor resolution (16 megapixels)
cannot swap lenses (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.0)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
lack of Timelapse function
60
manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen is a decent size (3 inch)
decent sensor size (Four Thirds)
delivers RAW formats
good battery life (380 per charge)
does not have image stabilization
megapixel count low (12MP)
does not have Timelapse function
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SH-50 Vlogging information
Panasonic GF1 Vlogging information
34
really wide (25mm)
touchscreen functionality
built in image stabilization (Optical)
has face detect autofocus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
lighter than average in class (269 grams)
slow max aperture (f3.0)
screen isn't selfie friendly
lack of microphone socket
25
features face detection focusing
does not have a selfie friendly screen
does not have image stabilization
video resolution low (1280 x 720 resolution)
does not have external microphone support
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Olympus SH-50 vs Panasonic GF1 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SH-50 and Panasonic GF1
 Olympus SH-50Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1
General Information
Company Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus SH-50 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1
Type Small Sensor Superzoom Entry-Level Mirrorless
Revealed 2013-01-08 2009-10-14
Physical type Compact Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Chip TruePic VI Venus Engine HD
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" Four Thirds
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor area 28.1mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 12 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4608 x 3456 4000 x 3000
Max native ISO 6400 3200
Minimum native ISO 125 100
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Autofocus touch
Autofocus continuous
Autofocus single
Tracking autofocus
Autofocus selectice
Autofocus center weighted
Multi area autofocus
Live view autofocus
Face detection autofocus
Contract detection autofocus
Phase detection autofocus
Total focus points - 23
Lens
Lens support fixed lens Micro Four Thirds
Lens zoom range 25-600mm (24.0x) -
Maximal aperture f/3.0-6.9 -
Macro focusing range 5cm -
Amount of lenses - 107
Focal length multiplier 5.8 2.1
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen size 3 inch 3 inch
Screen resolution 460 thousand dots 460 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Screen tech - TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None None
Features
Minimum shutter speed 15s 60s
Fastest shutter speed 1/2000s 1/4000s
Continuous shutter rate 12.0 frames/s 3.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom white balance
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 4.00 m 6.00 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in, Slow Sync Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync
External flash
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Fastest flash synchronize - 1/160s
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60fps), 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 480fps (176 x 128), 240fps (384 x 288) 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video format MPEG-4, H.264 AVCHD Lite
Microphone support
Headphone support
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
Environmental sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 269 gr (0.59 lb) 385 gr (0.85 lb)
Physical dimensions 112 x 63 x 42mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.7") 119 x 71 x 36mm (4.7" x 2.8" x 1.4")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating not tested 54
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 21.2
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 10.3
DXO Low light rating not tested 513
Other
Battery life - 380 photos
Type of battery - Battery Pack
Battery ID SLB-10A -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, Pet Auto Shutter) Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 images))
Time lapse feature
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/MMC
Card slots Single Single
Launch price $300 $400