Panasonic FZ40 vs Pentax K-S2

The following is a extended comparison of the Panasonic FZ40 vs Pentax K-S2, one is a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by companies Panasonic and Pentax. There exists a crucial gap among the image resolutions of the FZ40 (14MP) and K-S2 (20MP) and the FZ40 (1/2.3") and K-S2 (APS-C) enjoy totally different sensor dimensions.

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The FZ40 was unveiled 5 years earlier than the K-S2 which is a fairly serious gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Both cameras come with different body type with the Panasonic FZ40 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Pentax K-S2 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before getting through a in-depth comparison, below is a quick introduction of how the FZ40 matches up against the K-S2 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Below is a preview of the gallery photos for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ40 and Pentax K-S2. The full galleries are viewable at Panasonic FZ40 Gallery and Pentax K-S2 Gallery.

When you are intending to travel with your camera, you need to consider its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic FZ40 offers physical dimensions of 120mm x 80mm x 92mm (4.7" x 3.1" x 3.6") with a weight of 494 grams (1.09 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-S2 has dimensions of 123mm x 91mm x 73mm (4.8" x 3.6" x 2.9") having a weight of 678 grams (1.49 lbs).

Check out the Panasonic FZ40 vs Pentax K-S2 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you use at the time. Here is the front view measurements comparison of the FZ40 vs the K-S2.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the FZ40 and K-S2 is 68 and 64 respectively.

Quite often, its difficult to see the gap in sensor dimensions purely by going through a spec sheet. The picture underneath should give you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the FZ40 and K-S2.

As you can see, each of the cameras have got different resolutions and different sensor dimensions. The FZ40 with its smaller sensor will make shooting shallower depth of field more challenging and the Pentax K-S2 will show greater detail having an extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will allow you to crop pictures much more aggressively. The more aged FZ40 will be disadvantaged in sensor tech.