Panasonic ZS8 vs Pentax K-3 II

Its time to look more in depth at the Panasonic ZS8 vs Pentax K-3 II, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Advanced DSLR by companies Panasonic and Pentax. There exists a substantial gap among the resolutions of the ZS8 (14MP) and K-3 II (24MP) and the ZS8 (1/2.3") and K-3 II (APS-C) offer totally different sensor sizes.

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The ZS8 was released 4 years earlier than the K-3 II and that is a fairly big difference as far as camera technology is concerned. Both the cameras have different body design with the Panasonic ZS8 being a Compact camera and the Pentax K-3 II being a Mid-size SLR camera.

Before delving straight to a thorough comparison, here is a brief summation of how the ZS8 scores versus the K-3 II in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Here is a sample of the gallery pics for Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS8 & Pentax K-3 II. The complete galleries are provided at Panasonic ZS8 Gallery & Pentax K-3 II Gallery.

For anybody who is planning to carry your camera regularly, you will want to think about its weight and measurements. The Panasonic ZS8 offers external dimensions of 105mm x 58mm x 33mm (4.1" x 2.3" x 1.3") having a weight of 210 grams (0.46 lbs) while the Pentax K-3 II has proportions of 131mm x 100mm x 77mm (5.2" x 3.9" x 3.0") accompanied by a weight of 800 grams (1.76 lbs).

See the Panasonic ZS8 vs Pentax K-3 II in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you have during that time. Below is a front view measurement comparison of the ZS8 versus the K-3 II.

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the ZS8 and K-3 II is 92 and 59 respectively.

Quite often, its tough to visualise the contrast in sensor sizing only by looking through a spec sheet. The visual underneath may offer you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the ZS8 and K-3 II.

Clearly, both of these cameras provide different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The ZS8 featuring a smaller sensor will make achieving shallower depth of field harder and the Pentax K-3 II will render greater detail as a result of its extra 10 Megapixels. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop photos more aggressively. The older ZS8 will be behind with regard to sensor innovation.