Panasonic FZ1000 vs Pentax ist DL2

Its time to take a closer look at the Panasonic FZ1000 and Pentax ist DL2, one being a Large Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by companies Panasonic and Pentax. There is a big difference between the sensor resolutions of the FZ1000 (20MP) and ist DL2 (6MP) and the FZ1000 (1") and ist DL2 (APS-C) posses totally different sensor dimensions.

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The FZ1000 was manufactured 8 years later than the ist DL2 and that is quite a big gap as far as tech is concerned. The two cameras feature different body design with the Panasonic FZ1000 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Pentax ist DL2 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before diving straight to a full comparison, here is a concise overview of how the FZ1000 matches up against the ist DL2 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a preview of the gallery photos for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ1000 and Pentax ist DL2. The entire galleries are viewable at Panasonic FZ1000 Gallery and Pentax ist DL2 Gallery.

For anyone who is going to lug around your camera often, you need to take into account its weight and measurements. The Panasonic FZ1000 has physical measurements of 137mm x 99mm x 131mm (5.4" x 3.9" x 5.2") with a weight of 831 grams (1.83 lbs) while the Pentax ist DL2 has proportions of 125mm x 93mm x 66mm (4.9" x 3.7" x 2.6") along with a weight of 565 grams (1.25 lbs).

Check the Panasonic FZ1000 and Pentax ist DL2 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you choose at the time. The following is a front view physical size comparison of the FZ1000 against the ist DL2.

Looking at size and weight, the portability rating of the FZ1000 and ist DL2 is 55 and 69 respectively.

In many cases, it is very hard to visualise the gap between sensor measurements only by reviewing specifications. The graphic below should provide you a more clear sense of the sensor measurements in the FZ1000 and ist DL2.

To sum up, both the cameras feature different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The FZ1000 featuring a tinier sensor will make achieving bokeh harder and the Panasonic FZ1000 will offer you extra detail due to its extra 14 Megapixels. Higher resolution will enable you to crop photographs way more aggressively. The more recent FZ1000 is going to have a benefit with regard to sensor technology.