Panasonic GH3 vs Pentax E90

Let's look more in depth at the Panasonic GH3 and Pentax E90, former being a Advanced Mirrorless while the latter is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Panasonic and Pentax. There exists a substantial gap among the sensor resolutions of the GH3 (16MP) and E90 (10MP) and the GH3 (Four Thirds) and E90 (1/2.3") posses different sensor sizing.

Photography Glossary

The GH3 was manufactured 2 years later than the E90 and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Panasonic GH3 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Pentax E90 being a Compact camera.

Before we go into a thorough comparison, here is a simple overview of how the GH3 matches up vs the E90 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a preview of the gallery images for Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 & Pentax Optio E90. The entire galleries are provided at Panasonic GH3 Gallery & Pentax E90 Gallery.

If you are looking to lug around your camera regularly, you will want to factor its weight and size. The Panasonic GH3 comes with exterior dimensions of 133mm x 93mm x 82mm (5.2" x 3.7" x 3.2") with a weight of 550 grams (1.21 lbs) and the Pentax E90 has specifications of 102mm x 59mm x 25mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.0") with a weight of 145 grams (0.32 lbs).

Examine the Panasonic GH3 and Pentax E90 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will vary based on the lens you are employing at the time. The following is a front view proportions comparison of the GH3 versus the E90.

Taking into account dimensions and weight, the portability score of the GH3 and E90 is 66 and 94 respectively.

Typically, its difficult to visualize the gap in sensor measurements purely by viewing specifications. The visual below will give you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the GH3 and E90.

Plainly, both cameras have different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The GH3 because of its bigger sensor is going to make shooting shallow DOF easier and the Panasonic GH3 will render extra detail due to its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will also make it easier to crop shots a bit more aggressively. The newer GH3 provides an advantage in sensor tech.