Panasonic FZ47 vs Pentax K-500

Here is a extensive comparison of the Panasonic FZ47 vs Pentax K-500, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR by brands Panasonic and Pentax. There exists a noticeable gap among the image resolutions of the FZ47 (12MP) and K-500 (16MP) and the FZ47 (1/2.3") and K-500 (APS-C) come with different sensor sizes.

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The FZ47 was manufactured 3 years earlier than the K-500 and that is a fairly sizable difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both of these cameras offer different body type with the Panasonic FZ47 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Pentax K-500 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before diving straight into a full comparison, below is a simple summation of how the FZ47 grades vs the K-500 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

The following is a preview of the gallery photos for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ47 & Pentax K-500. The entire galleries are provided at Panasonic FZ47 Gallery & Pentax K-500 Gallery.

For anyone who is intending to carry your camera often, you are going to need to think about its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic FZ47 has outer dimensions of 120mm x 80mm x 92mm (4.7" x 3.1" x 3.6") accompanied by a weight of 498 grams (1.10 lbs) while the Pentax K-500 has dimensions of 130mm x 97mm x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8") along with a weight of 646 grams (1.42 lbs).

Contrast the Panasonic FZ47 vs Pentax K-500 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

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 physical size comparison of the FZ47 versus the K-500.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the FZ47 and K-500 is 68 and 64 respectively.

Normally, it is very difficult to picture the difference in sensor sizing only by researching a spec sheet. The graphic below will help give you a greater sense of the sensor dimensions in the FZ47 and K-500.

Clearly, both the cameras enjoy different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The FZ47 because of its smaller sensor is going to make getting shallow DOF harder and the Pentax K-500 will render more detail due to its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will enable you to crop photographs far more aggressively. The older FZ47 will be disadvantaged with regard to sensor technology.