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Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3

Portability
81
Imaging
49
Features
57
Overall
52
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1 front
 
Pentax K-3 front
Portability
59
Imaging
65
Features
85
Overall
73

Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 Key Specs

Panasonic GH1
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 100 - 1600 (Raise to 3200)
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 385g - 124 x 90 x 45mm
  • Announced July 2009
  • Later Model is Panasonic GH2
Pentax K-3
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3.2" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 51200
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 800g - 131 x 100 x 77mm
  • Revealed April 2014
  • Replacement is Pentax K-3 II
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Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 Overview

Let's look a bit more in depth at the Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3, one is a Advanced Mirrorless and the latter is a Advanced DSLR by brands Panasonic and Pentax. There is a significant difference among the resolutions of the GH1 (12MP) and K-3 (24MP) and the GH1 (Four Thirds) and K-3 (APS-C) use totally different sensor size.

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The GH1 was manufactured 5 years earlier than the K-3 which is a fairly sizable gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of these cameras come with different body type with the Panasonic GH1 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax K-3 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before delving straight into a comprehensive comparison, below is a short summary of how the GH1 matches up against the K-3 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic GH1 over the Pentax K-3

 GH1 K-3 
Screen typeFully ArticulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Selfie screen Easy selfies

Reasons to pick Pentax K-3 over the Panasonic GH1

 K-3 GH1 
RevealedApril 2014July 2009More modern by 57 months
Screen dimension3.2"3"Bigger screen (+0.2")
Screen resolution1037k460kClearer screen (+577k dot)

Common features in the Panasonic GH1 and Pentax K-3

 GH1 K-3 
Manually focus Very precise focusing
Touch friendly screen Lacking Touch friendly screen

Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is aiming to carry around your camera frequently, you are going to need to factor its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic GH1 has got external dimensions of 124mm x 90mm x 45mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 1.8") with a weight of 385 grams (0.85 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-3 has dimensions of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") having a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

Analyze the Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you have at that moment. Following is the front view measurement comparison of the GH1 vs the K-3.

Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability grade of the GH1 and K-3 is 81 and 59 respectively.

Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 Sensor Comparison

Often, its difficult to see the difference in sensor sizes just by viewing specs. The pic here will offer you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the GH1 and K-3.

All in all, each of these cameras have got different megapixel count and different sensor sizes. The GH1 due to its smaller sensor will make shooting shallow depth of field more difficult and the Pentax K-3 will result in extra detail due to its extra 12 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also allow you to crop pictures much more aggressively. The more aged GH1 will be behind in sensor tech.

Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 sensor size comparison

Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic GH1 Portrait photography factors
Pentax K-3 Portrait photography factors
59
has manual focus
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
sensor resolution low (12MP)
79
has manual focus
sensor resolution is decent (24 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
includes face detect autofocus
saves RAW files
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Street Comparison

Panasonic GH1 as a Street photography camera
Pentax K-3 as a Street photography camera
72
screen articulates fully
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
no image stabilization
69
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
saves RAW files
environment proof
very good high ISO (51,200)
no moving screen
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Panasonic GH1
Sports photography with Pentax K-3
32
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
very slow continuous shooting (3.0 fps)
no image stabilization
sensor resolution low (12MP)
low battery (320 shots)
lacks phase detect autofocus
76
high shutter speed (1/8,000 seconds)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor resolution is decent (24MP)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
includes tracking focus
environment proof
supports phase detect autofocus
not so great battery (560 shots)
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic GH1 Travel photography info
Pentax K-3 Travel photography info
58
built-in flash
selfie friendly display
lack of Timelapse function
low battery (320 per charge)
sensor resolution low (12MP)
60
environment proof
sensor resolution is decent (24 megapixels)
flash built-in
not so great battery (560 CIPA)
doesn't have selfie friendly screen
Photography Glossary

Landscape Comparison

Panasonic GH1 Landscape photography advice
Pentax K-3 Landscape photography advice
55
has manual focus
swap lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inch)
sensor size is nice (Four Thirds)
saves RAW files
no image stabilization
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
low battery (320 CIPA)
lack of Timelapse function
77
has manual focus
swap lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
decent sized screen (3.2 inches)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor resolution is decent (24 megapixels)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
doesnt have anti aliasing filter
very good high ISO (51,200)
saves RAW files
environment proof
has double storage slots
not so great battery (560 per charge)
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Panasonic GH1
Vlogging with Pentax K-3
72
selfie friendly display
video res high (1920 x 1080 resolution)
comes with external microphone support
no image stabilization
34
image stabilization (Sensor based)
includes face detect autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
comes with mic port
doesn't have selfie friendly screen
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Panasonic GH1 vs Pentax K-3 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic GH1 and Pentax K-3
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1Pentax K-3
General Information
Brand Panasonic Pentax
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1 Pentax K-3
Category Advanced Mirrorless Advanced DSLR
Announced 2009-07-10 2014-04-10
Body design SLR-style mirrorless Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Processor Chip Venus Engine HD Prime III
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor dimensions 18.89 x 14.48mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 273.5mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 12MP 24MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2
Full resolution 4000 x 3000 6016 x 4000
Max native ISO 1600 51200
Max boosted ISO 3200 -
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW format
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
Continuous AF
Single AF
AF tracking
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Number of focus points - 27
Cross focus points - 25
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds Pentax KAF2
Total lenses 107 151
Focal length multiplier 1.9 1.5
Screen
Screen type Fully Articulated Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3 inches 3.2 inches
Resolution of screen 460k dot 1,037k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch friendly
Screen technology - TFT LCD monitor
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Electronic Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.64x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 60s 30s
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000s 1/8000s
Continuous shooting speed 3.0 frames per sec 8.0 frames per sec
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Custom WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 10.50 m 13.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync Auto, on, off, red-eye, slow sync, slow sync + red-eye, trailing curtain sync, high speed, wireless, manual
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/160s 1/180s
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60 fps), 1280 x 720 (60 fps), 848 x 480 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60i, 50i, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video format AVCHD MPEG-4, H.264
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 3.0 (5 GBit/sec)
GPS None Optional
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 385 grams (0.85 lbs) 800 grams (1.76 lbs)
Dimensions 124 x 90 x 45mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 1.8") 131 x 100 x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 64 80
DXO Color Depth score 21.6 23.7
DXO Dynamic range score 11.6 13.4
DXO Low light score 772 1216
Other
Battery life 320 images 560 images
Style of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model - D-LI90
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots Single 2
Pricing at launch $949 $639