Olympus 1s vs Panasonic ZS15

Its time to look a little more closely at the Olympus 1s vs Panasonic ZS15, both Small Sensor Superzoom digital cameras by brands Olympus and Panasonic. The sensor resolution of the 1s (12MP) and the ZS15 (12MP) is very well matched but the 1s (1/1.7") and ZS15 (1/2.3") enjoy different sensor measurements.

Photography Glossary

The 1s was introduced 2 years later than the ZS15 and that is quite a serious difference as far as tech is concerned. Both the cameras come with different body type with the Olympus 1s being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Panasonic ZS15 being a Compact camera.

Before delving in to a complete comparison, below is a concise synopsis of how the 1s matches up against the ZS15 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Following is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus Stylus 1s & Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS15. The whole galleries are viewable at Olympus 1s Gallery & Panasonic ZS15 Gallery.

For anybody who is looking to carry your camera frequently, you will want to factor in its weight and proportions. The Olympus 1s has external dimensions of 116mm x 87mm x 57mm (4.6" x 3.4" x 2.2") along with a weight of 402 grams (0.89 lbs) while the Panasonic ZS15 has measurements of 105mm x 58mm x 33mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.3") accompanied by a weight of 208 grams (0.46 lbs).

Look at the Olympus 1s vs Panasonic ZS15 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you have chosen at the time. Underneath is the front view overall size comparison of the 1s against the ZS15.

Using size and weight, the portability grade of the 1s and ZS15 is 79 and 92 respectively.

In many cases, its hard to imagine the contrast between sensor sizing simply by checking a spec sheet. The visual below may offer you a more clear sense of the sensor sizes in the 1s and ZS15.

As you can see, the two cameras posses the exact same resolution but different sensor sizing. The 1s includes the larger sensor which will make achieving shallow DOF simpler. The younger 1s should have an advantage with regard to sensor technology.