Clicky

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30

Portability
65
Imaging
41
Features
38
Overall
39
Panasonic Lumix DMC-L1 front
 
Pentax K-30 front
Portability
63
Imaging
57
Features
66
Overall
60

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30 Key Specs

Panasonic L1
(Full Review)
  • 7MP - Four Thirds Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • No Video
  • Micro Four Thirds Mount
  • 606g - 146 x 87 x 77mm
  • Released April 2007
Pentax K-30
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1/6000s Maximum Shutter
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 650g - 130 x 97 x 71mm
  • Revealed October 2012
  • Replacement is Pentax K-50
Photobucket discusses licensing 13 billion images with AI firms

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30 Overview

Its time to look more in depth at the Panasonic L1 versus Pentax K-30, both Advanced DSLR cameras by companies Panasonic and Pentax. There is a considerable difference among the resolutions of the L1 (7MP) and K-30 (16MP) and the L1 (Four Thirds) and K-30 (APS-C) have totally different sensor dimensions.

Apple Innovates by Creating Next-Level Optical Stabilization for iPhone

The L1 was manufactured 6 years prior to the K-30 and that is a fairly large difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Each of the cameras feature the same body design (Mid-size SLR).

Before diving straight to a in depth comparison, here is a brief summary of how the L1 matches up versus the K-30 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Meta to Introduce 'AI-Generated' Labels for Media starting next month
	
	

Reasons to pick Panasonic L1 over the Pentax K-30

 L1 K-30 

Reasons to pick Pentax K-30 over the Panasonic L1

 K-30 L1 
RevealedOctober 2012April 2007More recent by 67 months
Display size3"2.5"Larger display (+0.5")
Display resolution921k207kSharper display (+714k dot)

Common features in the Panasonic L1 and Pentax K-30

 L1 K-30 
Manual focus Dial exact focusing
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Selfie screen Missing selfie screen
Touch friendly display Neither comes with Touch friendly display

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is going to lug around your camera frequently, you are going to need to factor its weight and dimensions. The Panasonic L1 comes with physical dimensions of 146mm x 87mm x 77mm (5.7" x 3.4" x 3.0") having a weight of 606 grams (1.34 lbs) while the Pentax K-30 has dimensions of 130mm x 97mm x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8") and a weight of 650 grams (1.43 lbs).

See the Panasonic L1 versus Pentax K-30 in our brand new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Keep in mind, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you have chosen at that time. Here is a front view scale comparison of the L1 and the K-30.

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30 size comparison

Using size and weight, the portability score of the L1 and K-30 is 65 and 63 respectively.

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30 top view buttons comparison

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30 Sensor Comparison

Often, it is tough to visualise the contrast in sensor measurements only by viewing specs. The visual below should provide you a far better sense of the sensor dimensions in the L1 and K-30.

All in all, both of those cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The L1 due to its smaller sensor will make shooting shallow depth of field harder and the Pentax K-30 will render greater detail due to its extra 9MP. Greater resolution will help you crop pics way more aggressively. The older L1 will be disadvantaged in sensor technology.

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30 sensor size comparison

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30 Screen and ViewFinder

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
Photography Glossary

Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Panasonic L1 Portrait photography info
Pentax K-30 Portrait photography info
54
has manual focus
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
resolution not great (7 megapixels)
74
has manual focus
sensor resolution is decent (16 megapixels)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
supports face detect focusing
supports RAW files
Samsung Releases Faster Versions of EVO MicroSD Cards

Street Comparison

Panasonic L1 Street photography advice
Pentax K-30 Street photography advice
58
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
lighter than competitors in class (606 grams)
fixed screen
no image stabilization
68
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
supports RAW files
weather proofing
no moving screen
Japan-exclusive Leica Leitz Phone 3 features big sensor and new modes

Sports Comparison

Panasonic L1 Sports photography features
Pentax K-30 Sports photography features
40
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
has phase detect AF
painfully slow continuous shooting (3.0 frames/s)
no image stabilization
resolution not great (7MP)
67
maximum shutter speed is high (1/6,000s)
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
supports tracking focus
weather proofing
sensor has phase detect AF
continuous shooting slow (6.0 frames per second)
terrible battery pack (410 shots)
Snapchat Adds Watermarks to AI-Created Images

Travel Comparison

Panasonic L1 Travel photography highlights
Pentax K-30 Travel photography highlights
50
lighter than competitors in class (606g)
has built in flash
doesn't have Timelapse function
resolution not great (7 megapixels)
does not have a selfie friendly display
60
weather proofing
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
flash built-in
terrible battery pack (410 per charge)
screen isn't selfie friendly
Pentax 17 Pre-Orders Outperform Expectations by a Landslide

Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Panasonic L1
Landscape photography with Pentax K-30
47
has manual focus
interchangeable lenses (Micro Four Thirds mount)
sensor size is good (Four Thirds)
supports RAW formats
screen is somewhat small (2.5")
no image stabilization
resolution not great (7 megapixels)
doesn't have Timelapse function
73
has manual focus
change lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
screen size is decent (3")
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor resolution is decent (16MP)
sensor size is decent (APS-C)
supports RAW files
weather proofing
terrible battery pack (410 per charge)
Sora from OpenAI releases its first ever music video

Vlogging Comparison

Panasonic L1 Vlogging factors
Pentax K-30 Vlogging factors
9
can't shoot video
30
has image stabilization (Sensor based)
supports face detect focusing
video resolution high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
screen isn't selfie friendly
missing microphone port
President Biden pushes bill mandating TikTok sale or ban

Panasonic L1 vs Pentax K-30 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Panasonic L1 and Pentax K-30
 Panasonic Lumix DMC-L1Pentax K-30
General Information
Brand Name Panasonic Pentax
Model Panasonic Lumix DMC-L1 Pentax K-30
Category Advanced DSLR Advanced DSLR
Released 2007-04-11 2012-10-29
Body design Mid-size SLR Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Processor Chip - Prime M
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size Four Thirds APS-C
Sensor measurements 17.3 x 13mm 23.7 x 15.7mm
Sensor surface area 224.9mm² 372.1mm²
Sensor resolution 7 megapixel 16 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2
Peak resolution 3136 x 2352 4928 x 3264
Highest native ISO 1600 12800
Highest enhanced ISO - 25600
Lowest native ISO 100 100
RAW pictures
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch focus
Continuous AF
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points 3 11
Cross focus points - 9
Lens
Lens mount Micro Four Thirds Pentax KAF2
Total lenses 45 151
Crop factor 2.1 1.5
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen sizing 2.5 inch 3 inch
Screen resolution 207k dot 921k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Screen tech - TFT LCD monitor with brightness/color adjustment and AR coating
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder coverage 95 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.46x 0.61x
Features
Min shutter speed 60 secs 30 secs
Max shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/6000 secs
Continuous shutter speed 3.0 frames/s 6.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Set WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 13.00 m 12.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash modes Auto, Red-Eye Auto, On, Red-Eye On, Red-Eye Slow Sync, Off, Slow Sync (1&2) Auto, On, Off, Red-eye,Slow Sync, Slow Sync+ Redeye, Trailing Curtain Sync, Wireless
Hot shoe
AEB
White balance bracketing
Max flash sync 1/160 secs 1/180 secs
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions - 1920 x 1080 (30,25,24 fps), 1280 x 720 (60,50,30,25,24 fps), 640 x 424 (30,25,24 fps)
Highest video resolution None 1920x1080
Video data format - MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None Optional
Physical
Environment seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 606 grams (1.34 lbs) 650 grams (1.43 lbs)
Physical dimensions 146 x 87 x 77mm (5.7" x 3.4" x 3.0") 130 x 97 x 71mm (5.1" x 3.8" x 2.8")
DXO scores
DXO Overall score not tested 79
DXO Color Depth score not tested 23.7
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 13.0
DXO Low light score not tested 1129
Other
Battery life - 410 pictures
Battery form - Battery Pack
Battery model - D-LI109,4 x AA
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes ( 2 or 12 seconds)
Time lapse shooting
Type of storage SD/MMC card SD/SDHC/SDXC
Storage slots Single Single
Price at release $1,500 $525