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Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II

Portability
81
Imaging
49
Features
57
Overall
52
Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1 front
 
Sony Alpha A7S II front
Portability
68
Imaging
60
Features
76
Overall
66

Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II Key Specs

Panasonic GH1
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 100 - 1600 (Boost to 3200)
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 385g - 124 x 90 x 45mm
  • Released July 2009
  • Renewed by Panasonic GH2
Sony A7S II
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - Full frame Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 102400 (Expand to 409600)
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • 1/8000s Max Shutter
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 627g - 127 x 96 x 60mm
  • Introduced October 2015
  • Older Model is Sony A7S
  • Replacement is Sony A7S III
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Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II Overview

Below, we will be matching up the Panasonic GH1 and Sony A7S II, one being a Advanced Mirrorless and the latter is a Pro Mirrorless by companies Panasonic and Sony. The sensor resolution of the GH1 (12MP) and the A7S II (12MP) is pretty close but the GH1 (Four Thirds) and A7S II (Full frame) possess totally different sensor dimensions.

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The GH1 was unveiled 7 years before the A7S II and that is a fairly big gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras come with the identical body type (SLR-style mirrorless).

Before getting through a comprehensive comparison, below is a brief view of how the GH1 scores versus the A7S II with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

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Reasons to pick Panasonic GH1 over the Sony A7S II

 GH1 A7S II 
Screen typeFully ArticulatedTiltingFully Articulating screen
Selfie screen Easy selfies

Reasons to pick Sony A7S II over the Panasonic GH1

 A7S II GH1 
IntroducedOctober 2015July 2009Fresher by 76 months
Screen resolution1229k460kClearer screen (+769k dot)

Common features in the Panasonic GH1 and Sony A7S II

 GH1 A7S II 
Focus manually Dial accurate focus
Screen dimension3"3"Identical screen sizing
Touch screen Neither has Touch screen

Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II Physical Comparison

In case you're aiming to carry your camera, you should consider its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic GH1 has physical dimensions of 124mm x 90mm x 45mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 1.8") accompanied by a weight of 385 grams (0.85 lbs) while the Sony A7S II has dimensions of 127mm x 96mm x 60mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 2.4") having a weight of 627 grams (1.38 lbs).

Check the Panasonic GH1 and Sony A7S II in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Remember that, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you are utilizing at that time. Below is the front view overall size comparison of the GH1 vs the A7S II.

Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the GH1 and A7S II is 81 and 68 respectively.

Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II top view buttons comparison

Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II Sensor Comparison

Normally, it is difficult to envision the gap in sensor sizing just by looking through technical specs. The graphic below may offer you a clearer sense of the sensor dimensions in the GH1 and A7S II.

As you can tell, both of those cameras posses the exact same megapixel count albeit not the same sensor sizing. The GH1 offers the smaller sensor which is going to make getting shallow DOF trickier. The older GH1 will be disadvantaged in sensor technology.

Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II sensor size comparison

Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic GH1 Portrait photography highlights
Sony A7S II Portrait photography highlights
59
you can focus manually
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
resolution not great (12 megapixels)
68
has manual focus
large sensor size (Full frame)
comes with face detection autofocus
delivers RAW formats
sensor resolution low (12MP)
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Street Comparison

Street photography with Panasonic GH1
Street photography with Sony A7S II
72
screen articulates
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
lack of image stabilization
78
screen tilts up and down
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
large sensor size (Full frame)
delivers RAW formats
environment proof
good high ISO (102,400)
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Sports Comparison

Panasonic GH1 as a Sports photography camera
Sony A7S II as a Sports photography camera
32
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
max frames per second low (3.0 fps)
lack of image stabilization
resolution not great (12MP)
terrible battery pack (320 shots)
lack of phase detect auto focus
57
great max shutter speed (1/8,000s)
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
large sensor size (Full frame)
comes with tracking autofocus
environment proof
slow continuous shooting (5.0 frames per second)
sensor resolution low (12MP)
bad battery life (370 per charge)
has no phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Panasonic GH1 as a Travel photography camera
Sony A7S II as a Travel photography camera
58
has built in flash
selfie friendly screen
no Time Lapse function
terrible battery pack (320 CIPA)
resolution not great (12MP)
49
environment proof
bad battery life (370 per charge)
sensor resolution low (12 megapixels)
screen is not selfie friendly
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Landscape Comparison

Panasonic GH1 Landscape photography info
Sony A7S II Landscape photography info
55
you can focus manually
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
screen size is good (3")
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
lack of image stabilization
resolution not great (12 megapixels)
terrible battery pack (320 CIPA)
no Time Lapse function
70
has manual focus
swap lenses (Sony E mount)
decent sized screen (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
large sensor size (Full frame)
good high ISO (102,400)
delivers RAW formats
environment proof
sensor resolution low (12MP)
bad battery life (370 CIPA)
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Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic GH1 as a Vlogging camera
Sony A7S II as a Vlogging camera
72
selfie friendly screen
high res video (1920 x 1080 resolution)
comes with external mic port
lack of image stabilization
35
has image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
comes with face detection autofocus
video res high (3840 x 2160 resolution)
does have external mic jack
screen is not selfie friendly
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Panasonic GH1 vs Sony A7S II Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic GH1 and Sony A7S II
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1Sony Alpha A7S II
General Information
Make Panasonic Sony
Model type Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1 Sony Alpha A7S II
Class Advanced Mirrorless Pro Mirrorless
Released 2009-07-10 2015-10-12
Body design SLR-style mirrorless SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Powered by Venus Engine HD Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds Full frame
Sensor dimensions 18.89 x 14.48mm 35.6 x 23.8mm
Sensor area 273.5mm² 847.3mm²
Sensor resolution 12 megapixels 12 megapixels
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4000 x 3000 4240 x 2832
Max native ISO 1600 102400
Max enhanced ISO 3200 409600
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW pictures
Min enhanced ISO - 50
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points - 169
Lens
Lens mount type Micro Four Thirds Sony E
Number of lenses 107 121
Focal length multiplier 1.9 1
Screen
Range of screen Fully Articulated Tilting
Screen diagonal 3" 3"
Screen resolution 460 thousand dot 1,229 thousand dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359 thousand dot
Viewfinder coverage 100% 100%
Viewfinder magnification - 0.78x
Features
Minimum shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/8000 secs
Continuous shutter speed 3.0 frames/s 5.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Built-in flash
Flash distance 10.50 m no built-in flash
Flash settings Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync no built-in flash
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Fastest flash sync 1/160 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported 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) 4K (3840 x 2160 @ 30p/24p [60-100Mbps]), Full HD (1920 x 1080 @ 120p/60p/60i/30p/24p [50-100Mbps]), 720p (30p [16Mbps])
Max video resolution 1920x1080 3840x2160
Video data format AVCHD MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Mic input
Headphone input
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 385g (0.85 pounds) 627g (1.38 pounds)
Dimensions 124 x 90 x 45mm (4.9" x 3.5" x 1.8") 127 x 96 x 60mm (5.0" x 3.8" x 2.4")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 64 85
DXO Color Depth rating 21.6 23.6
DXO Dynamic range rating 11.6 13.3
DXO Low light rating 772 2993
Other
Battery life 320 photographs 370 photographs
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery ID - NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec; continuous (3 or 5 exposures))
Time lapse feature With downloadable app
Storage media SD/SDHC SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
Storage slots One One
Launch pricing $949 $2,767