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Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2

Portability
88
Imaging
41
Features
51
Overall
45
Olympus Stylus SH-3 front
 
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2 front
Portability
70
Imaging
51
Features
65
Overall
56

Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2 Key Specs

Olympus SH-3
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • 25-600mm (F3.0-6.9) lens
  • 271g - 109 x 63 x 42mm
  • Released February 2016
  • Replaced the Olympus SH-2
Panasonic GH2
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Display
  • ISO 160 - 12800
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 442g - 124 x 90 x 76mm
  • Launched March 2011
  • Superseded the Panasonic GH1
  • Renewed by Panasonic GH3
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Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2 Overview

Lets take a more detailed look at the Olympus SH-3 versus Panasonic GH2, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Advanced Mirrorless by companies Olympus and Panasonic. The sensor resolution of the SH-3 (16MP) and the GH2 (16MP) is fairly close but the SH-3 (1/2.3") and GH2 (Four Thirds) offer totally different sensor dimensions.

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The SH-3 was revealed 4 years later than the GH2 and that is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras feature different body design with the Olympus SH-3 being a Compact camera and the Panasonic GH2 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before diving into a full comparison, here is a quick view of how the SH-3 scores versus the GH2 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Olympus SH-3 over the Panasonic GH2

 SH-3 GH2 
LaunchedFebruary 2016March 2011More recent by 60 months

Reasons to pick Panasonic GH2 over the Olympus SH-3

 GH2 SH-3 
Manually focus Dial precise focus
Display typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating display
Selfie screen Take selfies

Common features in the Olympus SH-3 and Panasonic GH2

 SH-3 GH2 
Display size3"3"Same display sizing
Display resolution460k460kIdentical display resolution
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2 Physical Comparison

If you are intending to lug around your camera frequently, you will need to think about its weight and dimensions. The Olympus SH-3 comes with external dimensions of 109mm x 63mm x 42mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.7") with a weight of 271 grams (0.60 lbs) and the Panasonic GH2 has dimensions of 124mm x 90mm x 76mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 3.0") accompanied by a weight of 442 grams (0.97 lbs).

Check the Olympus SH-3 versus Panasonic GH2 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will differ based on the lens you have chosen at that moment. Below is a front view measurement comparison of the SH-3 against the GH2.

Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2 size comparison

Considering size and weight, the portability rating of the SH-3 and GH2 is 88 and 70 respectively.

Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2 top view buttons comparison

Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2 Sensor Comparison

In many cases, its difficult to visualise the difference in sensor measurements just by looking through specs. The graphic underneath should offer you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the SH-3 and GH2.

As you can plainly see, both of these cameras feature the identical MP but not the same sensor measurements. The SH-3 comes with the smaller sensor which should make getting shallow DOF more challenging. The more recent SH-3 is going to have an advantage in sensor innovation.

Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2 sensor size comparison

Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2 Screen and ViewFinder

Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Olympus SH-3
Portrait photography with Panasonic GH2
44
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
provides face detect focusing
supports RAW formats
manual focus not available
cannot use external flash
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
70
focusing manually
decent MP (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports face detection focusing
supports RAW formats
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Street Comparison

Olympus SH-3 as a Street photography camera
Panasonic GH2 as a Street photography camera
70
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
supports RAW formats
supports focus via touch
lighter than competition (271g)
fixed screen
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
68
screen articulates fully
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
no image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Olympus SH-3 Sports photography advice
Panasonic GH2 Sports photography advice
51
incredible zoom range (25-600mm 24.0 x zoom)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
provides tracking focus
great battery pack (380 per charge)
no shutter priority mode
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
no phase detect AF
46
decent MP (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports tracking autofocus
continuous shooting slow (3.0 frames/s)
no image stabilization
not so great battery pack (330 CIPA)
does not have phase detect AF
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Travel Comparison

Olympus SH-3 Travel photography advice
Panasonic GH2 Travel photography advice
74
great battery pack (380 per charge)
lighter than competition (271 grams)
supports focus via touch
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
has built in flash
reasonably wide (25mm)
long reach (600mm)
does not feature selfie friendly screen
slow max aperture (f3.0)
62
decent MP (16 megapixels)
built-in flash
selfie friendly screen
missing Timelapse recording
not so great battery pack (330 CIPA)
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Landscape Comparison

Olympus SH-3 Landscape photography features
Panasonic GH2 Landscape photography features
55
reasonably wide (25mm)
screen size is decent (3 inch)
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
supports RAW formats
great battery pack (380 per charge)
manual focus not available
can't switch lenses (fixed lens mount)
slow max aperture (f3.0)
very small sensor size (1/2.3")
60
focusing manually
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is decent (3 inches)
decent MP (16 megapixels)
good sensor size (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
no image stabilization
not so great battery pack (330 CIPA)
missing Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Olympus SH-3 Vlogging highlights
Panasonic GH2 Vlogging highlights
35
reasonably wide (25mm)
touchscreen
built in image stabilization (Sensor-shift)
provides face detect focusing
high quality video (3840 x 2160 pixels)
lighter than competition (271 grams)
slow max aperture (f3.0)
does not feature selfie friendly screen
no microphone port
71
selfie friendly screen
touchscreen functionality
supports face detection focusing
high video quality (1920 x 1080 resolution)
comes with external microphone port
no image stabilization
Photography Glossary

Olympus SH-3 vs Panasonic GH2 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Olympus SH-3 and Panasonic GH2
 Olympus Stylus SH-3Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2
General Information
Company Olympus Panasonic
Model type Olympus Stylus SH-3 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2
Category Small Sensor Superzoom Advanced Mirrorless
Released 2016-02-08 2011-03-23
Body design Compact SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Powered by TruePic VII Venus Engine FHD
Sensor type BSI-CMOS CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.3" Four Thirds
Sensor measurements 6.17 x 4.55mm 17.3 x 13mm
Sensor surface area 28.1mm² 224.9mm²
Sensor resolution 16 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Peak resolution 4608 x 3456 4608 x 3456
Highest native ISO 6400 12800
Lowest native ISO 125 160
RAW support
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Autofocus continuous
Single autofocus
Autofocus tracking
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 mount type fixed lens Micro Four Thirds
Lens zoom range 25-600mm (24.0x) -
Highest aperture f/3.0-6.9 -
Macro focusing distance 3cm -
Number of lenses - 107
Crop factor 5.8 2.1
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fully Articulated
Screen size 3 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 460 thousand dot 460 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Screen tech - TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder None Electronic
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.71x
Features
Min shutter speed 30 secs 60 secs
Max shutter speed 1/2000 secs 1/4000 secs
Continuous shutter speed 11.5 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 8.30 m (at ISO 3200) 15.60 m
Flash options Auto, redeye reduction, fill-in, off Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Max flash sync - 1/160 secs
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Video resolutions 3840 x 2160 (15 fps), 1920 x 1080 (60p, 30p), 1280 x 720 (30p), 640 x 480 (30 fps) 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)
Highest video resolution 3840x2160 1920x1080
Video file format H.264 AVCHD, Motion JPEG
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
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
Environment seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 271g (0.60 lbs) 442g (0.97 lbs)
Physical dimensions 109 x 63 x 42mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.7") 124 x 90 x 76mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO Overall 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 380 photographs 330 photographs
Battery form Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID LI-92B -
Self timer Yes (2 or 12 sec, custom) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD, SDHC, SDXC, Internal Memory SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots One One
Price at release $579 $1,000