Olympus SH-50 vs Pentax K-S1

On this page, we are reviewing the Olympus SH-50 and Pentax K-S1, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the other is a Advanced DSLR by companies Olympus and Pentax. The image resolution of the SH-50 (16MP) and the K-S1 (20MP) is fairly similar but the SH-50 (1/2.3") and K-S1 (APS-C) posses different sensor size.

Photography Glossary

The SH-50 was brought out 19 months before the K-S1 making them a generation apart from each other. Both cameras have different body design with the Olympus SH-50 being a Compact camera and the Pentax K-S1 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before going straight to a full comparison, here is a quick summary of how the SH-50 matches up against the K-S1 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus SH-50 and Pentax K-S1. The entire galleries are viewable at Olympus SH-50 Gallery and Pentax K-S1 Gallery.

If you are planning to lug around your camera, you have to think about its weight and proportions. The Olympus SH-50 has outer dimensions of 112mm x 63mm x 42mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.7") with a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs) and the Pentax K-S1 has measurements of 121mm x 93mm x 70mm (4.8" x 3.7" x 2.8") with a weight of 558 grams (1.23 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus SH-50 and Pentax K-S1 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ dependant on the lens you are utilizing during that time. Here is a front view sizing comparison of the SH-50 vs the K-S1.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability rating of the SH-50 and K-S1 is 88 and 69 respectively.

Oftentimes, it is tough to picture the contrast between sensor measurements just by reading specs. The visual here should give you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the SH-50 and K-S1.

As you can plainly see, both of those cameras have different resolutions and different sensor measurements. The SH-50 featuring a tinier sensor is going to make shooting bokeh harder and the Pentax K-S1 will offer you extra detail having its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop photos a bit more aggressively. The older SH-50 is going to be disadvantaged with regard to sensor innovation.