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Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2

Portability
79
Imaging
37
Features
31
Overall
34
Olympus SP-610UZ front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2 front
Portability
70
Imaging
51
Features
65
Overall
56

Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 Key Specs

Olympus SP-610UZ
(Full Review)
  • 14MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 3200
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 28-616mm (F3.3-5.7) lens
  • 405g - 107 x 73 x 73mm
  • Announced January 2011
  • Earlier Model is Olympus SP-600 UZ
  • New Model is Olympus SP-620 UZ
Panasonic GH2
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 160 - 12800
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 442g - 124 x 90 x 76mm
  • Introduced March 2011
  • Superseded the Panasonic GH1
  • Renewed by Panasonic GH3
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Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 Overview

Its time to look closer at the Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Advanced Mirrorless by companies Olympus and Panasonic. The sensor resolution of the SP-610UZ (14MP) and the GH2 (16MP) is relatively close but the SP-610UZ (1/2.3") and GH2 (Four Thirds) come with different sensor measurements.

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The SP-610UZ was introduced 2 months prior to the GH2 and they are both of a similar age. Both cameras offer different body type with the Olympus SP-610UZ being a Compact camera and the Panasonic GH2 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before getting straight into a detailed comparison, below is a quick highlight of how the SP-610UZ grades vs the GH2 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SP-610UZ over the Panasonic GH2

 SP-610UZ GH2 

Reasons to pick Panasonic GH2 over the Olympus SP-610UZ

 GH2 SP-610UZ 
Manual focus More exact focus
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Screen resolution460k230kSharper screen (+230k dot)
Selfie screen Easy selfies
Touch friendly screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Olympus SP-610UZ and Panasonic GH2

 SP-610UZ GH2 
IntroducedJanuary 2011March 2011Same age
Screen sizing3"3"Equivalent screen measurements

Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 Physical Comparison

When you are intending to lug around your camera often, you will have to factor in its weight and measurements. The Olympus SP-610UZ has external measurements of 107mm x 73mm x 73mm (4.2" x 2.9" x 2.9") accompanied by a weight of 405 grams (0.89 lbs) whilst the Panasonic GH2 has proportions of 124mm x 90mm x 76mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 3.0") and a weight of 442 grams (0.97 lbs).

Look at the Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you choose at that moment. The following is the front view over all size comparison of the SP-610UZ vs the GH2.

Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 size comparison

Considering size and weight, the portability grade of the SP-610UZ and GH2 is 79 and 70 respectively.

Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 Sensor Comparison

Generally, it is very tough to imagine the contrast in sensor measurements only by looking through a spec sheet. The graphic here should give you a much better sense of the sensor measurements in the SP-610UZ and GH2.

As you can see, both the cameras enjoy different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The SP-610UZ using its smaller sensor is going to make getting shallower depth of field trickier and the Panasonic GH2 will render more detail using its extra 2 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also allow you to crop pictures far more aggressively.

Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 sensor size comparison

Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Olympus SP-610UZ Portrait photography features
Panasonic GH2 Portrait photography features
28
megapixel count good (14MP)
focusing manually not possible
manual mode not possible
cannot use external flash
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
70
manual focus
good MP (16MP)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
features face detect autofocus
exports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Olympus SP-610UZ Street photography factors
Panasonic GH2 Street photography factors
50
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
screen does not articulate
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
68
screen articulates
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
no image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SP-610UZ Sports photography advice
Panasonic GH2 Sports photography advice
39
great zoom range (28-616mm 22.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
megapixel count good (14MP)
slow continuous shooting (1.0 fps)
no shutter priority mode
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
has no phase detect AF
46
good MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
features tracking focus
max fps very slow (3.0 frames/s)
no image stabilization
low battery power (330 shots)
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SP-610UZ as a Travel photography camera
Panasonic GH2 as a Travel photography camera
61
megapixel count good (14MP)
has built in flash
fairly wide (28mm)
long reach (616mm)
lack of Time Lapse recording
display is not selfie friendly
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
62
good MP (16MP)
built-in flash
selfie friendly screen
does not have Timelapse mode
low battery power (330 shots)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SP-610UZ Landscape photography info
Panasonic GH2 Landscape photography info
40
fairly wide (28mm)
screen size is good (3 inches)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
megapixel count good (14 megapixels)
focusing manually not possible
can't change lens (fixed lens mount)
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
manual mode not possible
sensor size is small (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
lack of Time Lapse recording
60
manual focus
switch lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
nice screen size (3")
good MP (16 megapixels)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
exports RAW formats
no image stabilization
low battery power (330 shots)
does not have Timelapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SP-610UZ Vlogging details
Panasonic GH2 Vlogging details
26
fairly wide (28mm)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
display is not selfie friendly
low quality video (1280 x 720 pixels)
lack of external mic jack
71
selfie friendly screen
screen is touchscreen
features face detect autofocus
high res video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
does have microphone jack
no image stabilization
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Olympus SP-610UZ vs Panasonic GH2 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SP-610UZ and Panasonic GH2
 Olympus SP-610UZPanasonic Lumix DMC-GH2
General Information
Brand Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus SP-610UZ Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2
Type Small Sensor Superzoom Advanced Mirrorless
Announced 2011-01-06 2011-03-23
Body design Compact SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Processor Chip TruePic III Venus Engine FHD
Sensor type CCD 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 14MP 16MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 4:3 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 4288 x 3216 4608 x 3456
Maximum native ISO 3200 12800
Minimum native ISO 100 160
RAW data
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch to focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
Selective AF
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
AF live view
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Total focus points 11 23
Lens
Lens mount type fixed lens Micro Four Thirds
Lens zoom range 28-616mm (22.0x) -
Maximum aperture f/3.3-5.7 -
Macro focusing range 1cm -
Total lenses - 107
Crop factor 5.8 2.1
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fully Articulated
Display diagonal 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of display 230 thousand dot 460 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Display tech TFT Color LCD TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Electronic
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.71x
Features
Lowest shutter speed 4 secs 60 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/4000 secs
Continuous shooting speed 1.0fps 3.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation - Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash distance 6.30 m 15.60 m
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Fill-in Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync
External flash
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Highest flash sync - 1/160 secs
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 180 (30fps) 1920 x 1080 (24, 30, 60fps) 1280 x 720 (60, 30 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30fps), 320 x 240 (30fps)
Maximum video resolution 1280x720 1920x1080
Video format Motion JPEG AVCHD, Motion JPEG
Microphone input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 405g (0.89 lbs) 442g (0.97 lbs)
Dimensions 107 x 73 x 73mm (4.2" x 2.9" x 2.9") 124 x 90 x 76mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around rating not tested 60
DXO Color Depth rating not tested 21.2
DXO Dynamic range rating not tested 11.3
DXO Low light rating not tested 655
Other
Battery life 340 images 330 images
Form of battery AA Battery Pack
Battery ID 4 x AA -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Storage media SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots 1 1
Retail pricing $299 $1,000