Panasonic ZS100 vs Pentax K-5

On this page, we are contrasting the Panasonic ZS100 vs Pentax K-5, one is a Large Sensor Compact and the other is a Advanced DSLR by brands Panasonic and Pentax. There exists a crucial gap between the sensor resolutions of the ZS100 (20MP) and K-5 (16MP) and the ZS100 (1") and K-5 (APS-C) posses totally different sensor measurements.

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The ZS100 was launched 5 years after the K-5 which is quite a serious gap as far as technology is concerned. Both the cameras have different body design with the Panasonic ZS100 being a Large Sensor Compact camera and the Pentax K-5 being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before going right into a detailed comparison, here is a concise overview of how the ZS100 scores vs the K-5 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

This is a sample of the gallery pics for Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS100 and Pentax K-5. The complete galleries are available at Panasonic ZS100 Gallery and Pentax K-5 Gallery.

For anybody who is planning to travel with your camera, you will have to think about its weight and proportions. The Panasonic ZS100 provides outer dimensions of 111mm x 65mm x 44mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.7") and a weight of 312 grams (0.69 lbs) whilst the Pentax K-5 has measurements of 131mm x 97mm x 73mm (5.2" x 3.8" x 2.9") along with a weight of 740 grams (1.63 lbs).

Check the Panasonic ZS100 vs Pentax K-5 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are working with at that moment. The following is a front view measurement comparison of the ZS100 and the K-5.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the ZS100 and K-5 is 87 and 60 respectively.

Quite often, it can be hard to see the difference between sensor dimensions simply by going over technical specs. The pic below will help give you a better sense of the sensor sizes in the ZS100 and K-5.

As you have seen, each of these cameras have different megapixels and different sensor dimensions. The ZS100 due to its tinier sensor will make shooting shallower depth of field more challenging and the Panasonic ZS100 will deliver greater detail utilizing its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop pics a bit more aggressively. The fresher ZS100 will have a benefit when it comes to sensor innovation.