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Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1

Portability
89
Imaging
48
Features
54
Overall
50
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5 front
 
Pentax K-S1 front
Portability
69
Imaging
63
Features
70
Overall
65

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 Key Specs

Panasonic GF5
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 160 - 12800
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 267g - 108 x 67 x 37mm
  • Introduced April 2012
  • Superseded the Panasonic GF3
  • Successor is Panasonic GF6
Pentax K-S1
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 51200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/6000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 558g - 121 x 93 x 70mm
  • Launched August 2014
  • Renewed by Pentax K-S2
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Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 Overview

Let's look more closely at the Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1, one being a Entry-Level Mirrorless and the other is a Advanced DSLR by competitors Panasonic and Pentax. There exists a huge gap between the image resolutions of the GF5 (12MP) and K-S1 (20MP) and the GF5 (Four Thirds) and K-S1 (APS-C) have different sensor sizing.

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The GF5 was introduced 3 years before the K-S1 and that is quite a significant gap as far as technology is concerned. The two cameras have different body design with the Panasonic GF5 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax K-S1 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before going straight to a step-by-step comparison, here is a brief introduction of how the GF5 grades against the K-S1 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic GF5 over the Pentax K-S1

 GF5 K-S1 
Touch friendly display Easily navigate

Reasons to pick Pentax K-S1 over the Panasonic GF5

 K-S1 GF5 
LaunchedAugust 2014April 2012More recent by 29 months
Display resolution921k920kSharper display (+1k dot)

Common features in the Panasonic GF5 and Pentax K-S1

 GF5 K-S1 
Manual focus More exact focus
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Display dimensions3"3"Equal display measurement
Selfie screen Absent selfie screen

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 Physical Comparison

If you are going to lug around your camera regularly, you have to factor in its weight and measurements. The Panasonic GF5 provides physical measurements of 108mm x 67mm x 37mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.5") having a weight of 267 grams (0.59 lbs) and the Pentax K-S1 has proportions of 121mm x 93mm x 70mm (4.8" x 3.7" x 2.8") accompanied by a weight of 558 grams (1.23 lbs).

Compare the Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 in the latest Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ based on the lens you use at that time. Following is a front view size comparison of the GF5 against the K-S1.

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 size comparison

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability score of the GF5 and K-S1 is 89 and 69 respectively.

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it can be tough to imagine the gap between sensor measurements just by looking at specs. The visual below might provide you a far better sense of the sensor measurements in the GF5 and K-S1.

As you can plainly see, the two cameras provide different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The GF5 with its tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF harder and the Pentax K-S1 will give you more detail using its extra 8MP. Greater resolution will make it easier to crop pics more aggressively. The older GF5 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor innovation.

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 sensor size comparison

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic GF5 as a Portrait photography camera
Pentax K-S1 as a Portrait photography camera
55
manual focus
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports face detection autofocus
saves RAW formats
no external flash support
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
77
has manual focus
resolution is good (20MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
has face detect focusing
delivers RAW files
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Street Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Street photography features
Pentax K-S1 Street photography features
70
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
offers touch focus
fixed screen
does not have image stabilization
73
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
lighter than competition in class (558g)
good high ISO (51,200)
screen is fixed
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Panasonic GF5
Sports photography with Pentax K-S1
40
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
supports tracking autofocus
slow continuous shooting (4.0 frames per second)
does not have image stabilization
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
doesn't have phase detect autofocus
69
high shutter speed (1/6,000 seconds)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
resolution is good (20MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
has tracking focus
supports phase detect AF
very slow continuous shooting (5.4 frames per second)
bad battery life (410 shots)
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic GF5 Travel photography highlights
Pentax K-S1 Travel photography highlights
61
offers touch focus
built-in flash
no Timelapse recording
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
screen is not selfie friendly
60
lighter than competition in class (558g)
resolution is good (20 megapixels)
has built in flash
lack of Time Lapse recording
bad battery life (410 CIPA)
display isn't selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Panasonic GF5
Landscape photography with Pentax K-S1
59
manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
nice screen size (3 inch)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
saves RAW formats
does not have image stabilization
megapixel count low (12 megapixels)
no Timelapse recording
73
has manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
pretty good screen size (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
resolution is good (20 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
does not have anti-alias filter
good high ISO (51,200)
delivers RAW files
bad battery life (410 per charge)
lack of Time Lapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Panasonic GF5
Vlogging with Pentax K-S1
32
has touchscreen
supports face detection autofocus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
screen is not selfie friendly
does not have image stabilization
no external microphone support
33
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
has face detect focusing
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pixels)
lighter than competition in class (558g)
display isn't selfie friendly
lack of mic jack
Photography Glossary

Panasonic GF5 vs Pentax K-S1 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic GF5 and Pentax K-S1
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5Pentax K-S1
General Information
Manufacturer Panasonic Pentax
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF5 Pentax K-S1
Class Entry-Level Mirrorless Advanced DSLR
Introduced 2012-04-05 2014-08-27
Body design Rangefinder-style mirrorless Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Processor Venus Engine FHD Prime MII
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor dimensions 17.3 x 13mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 224.9mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2
Peak resolution 4000 x 3000 5472 x 3648
Highest native ISO 12800 51200
Minimum native ISO 160 100
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch to focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detect AF
Contract detect AF
Phase detect AF
Number of focus points 23 11
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds Pentax KAF2
Available lenses 107 151
Focal length multiplier 2.1 1.5
Screen
Display type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Display diagonal 3 inch 3 inch
Display resolution 920 thousand dot 921 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch function
Display technology TFT Color LCD with wide-viewing angle -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type None Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder coverage - 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.64x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 seconds 30 seconds
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/6000 seconds
Continuous shutter speed 4.0fps 5.4fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 6.30 m 10.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync Auto, auto + redeye, on, on + redeye reduction, slow sync, trailing curtain sync, manual
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/160 seconds -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60, 50 fps), 1280 x 720p (60, 30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (30,25,24 fps), 1280 x 720 (60,50 fps)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video file format MPEG-4, AVCHD H.264
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None Eye-Fi Connected
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None Optional
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 267g (0.59 pounds) 558g (1.23 pounds)
Physical dimensions 108 x 67 x 37mm (4.3" x 2.6" x 1.5") 121 x 93 x 70mm (4.8" x 3.7" x 2.8")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score 50 78
DXO Color Depth score 20.5 23.5
DXO Dynamic range score 10.0 13.0
DXO Low light score 573 1061
Other
Battery life 360 photographs 410 photographs
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - D-LI109
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec, 10 sec (3 images)) Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/SDHC/SDXC SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots One One
Retail cost $600 $339