Panasonic G3

Panasonic G3 is Panasonic's Entry-Level Mirrorless camera originally introduced on July of 2011. It comes with a 16 MegaPixel, CMOS Four Thirds sized sensor and has a maximum resolution of 4592 x 3448.

Panasonic introduced this camera in order to improve the older Panasonic G2 (Read Full Comparison) & then introduced the newer Panasonic G5 (Read Full Comparison) in order to improve this model.

The G3 is rated #79 out of 117 in Entry-Level Mirrorless cameras & all round #363 out of 1465 for cameras in our database. Remember to try our Advanced camera filter to get camera ratings based on your personal requirements.

Below is a graph of various criteria used in the scoring system.

The Panasonic G3 is part of a family of digital cameras. You can read the detailed range underneath.

You can check the G3 from several angles in the gallery below.

Below is a checklist of advantages and disadvantages of the Panasonic G3 based on factors which are often viewed as necessary in a camera.

The Panasonic G3 is powered by the Venus Engine FHD chip. The sensor size in the Panasonic G3 is 17.3mm x 13mm (Four Thirds). The 225 mm² sensor is able to resolve 4592 x 3448 pixels and aspect ratios of 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9.

Photography Glossary

The CMOS sensor has 16 megapixels and gives a native ISO range of 160 - 6400. RAW format is supported which means that the user has wider margin for error.

The picture underneath illustrates the G3's sensor dimensions when compared to other common sizes. The G3 sensor has a crop factor of 2.1 and is showcased in green.

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To get a sense of specific aspect ratios, you can refer to the visual below.

Panasonic G3 weighs around 0.74 pounds (336 gr / 11.85 oz) & the volume of the camera is 115mm x 84mm x 47mm (4.5" x 3.3" x 1.9"). The weight of normal Entry-Level Mirrorless camera is 329 gr so the Panasonic G3 is on par compared with its rivals.

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Underneath is a shot of the Panasonic G3 besides a soda so you can get a sense of its scale.

The top view underneath will highlight the button arrangement on the G3.

The G3 fits the Micro Four Thirds mount and has 162 lenses available to buy. Below is some of the lenses we have in our collection which will work with the G3.

ModelVisualizeFocal LengthApertureStabilizedWeight

Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 8mm f3.5 Fisheye8mmf/3.5 485g

Panasonic Leica DG Macro-Elmarit 45mm F2.8 ASPH OIS45mmf/2.8 225g

Photography Glossary

Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 17mm f1.817mmf/1.8 120g

Panasonic Lumix G Vario 45-200mm F4-5.6 II Power OIS45-200mmf/4-5.6 370g

Samyang MF 85mm F1.4 Mk285mmf/1.4548g

Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm f4-5.640-150mmf/4.0-5.6 190g

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Panasonic Leica D Vario-Elmar 14-50mm F3.8-5.6 Mega OIS14-50mmf/3.8-5.6 434g

The G3 has the following connectivity:

• USB Yes
• HDMI Yes

Cameras that include NFC and Bluetooth support can be used wirelessly through smartphones. You will be able to transfer pictures and oftentimes adjust camera settings without connecting physically to the camera.

Many applications even stream a Liveview and click the shutter whenever you aren't near the camera. If the camera features a HDMI port, it can be attached to an external monitor. Most cameras enable you to recharge the battery using the USB socket.

The maximum video resolution in the Panasonic G3 is 1920 x 1080 and you can shoot in AVCHD and Motion JPEG format. 1080p resolution offers a decent balance in quality and file sizes but FULL HD is not going to give you any room to downsample. The camera doesn't feature a microphone and headphone jack which means you get little control over the audio. It is perhaps best to look at an alternative model should you need decent audio for your video clips.

Panasonic G3 doesn't include weather sealing so damp conditions can affect the camera.

The Panasonic G3 comes with a 3 inch fully articulated display screen supporting a resolution of 460 thousand dots.

The display is selfie friendly to take self portraits and group photos when needed. Moreover the display screen is touch friendly which means that you can change focus points and adjust settings by using your fingertips.

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The View Finder specs for Panasonic G3 are the following:

• ViewFinder Electronic
• ViewFinder Resolution 1,440 thousand dots
• ViewFinder Coverage 100%
• ViewFinder Magnification 0.7x

For sunny outdoor situations which make the camera screens washed out and tricky to see, viewfinders will be rather useful.

Panasonic G3 continuous shooting rate is 4.0 frames/s. The maximum shutter speed is 1/4000 seconds.

Panasonic G3 has both inbuilt flash as well as external flash ability. The maximum flash sync is 1/160 seconds.

Panasonic G3 has just Contrast Detect Autofocus & does not have Phase Detect Autofocus. Phase Detection focusing is more snappier & precise in comparison with Contrast Detect focusing. The camera comes with Face detect making it useful for portrait photography.

It comes with 23 focus points to select from. Panasonic G3 has tap to focus. You can use your fingers in order to adjust focus points. It also features Tracking Autofocus for moving subjects. Panasonic G3 can use manual focus in case it is required in low light or you need more accurate focus control.

The battery in the Panasonic G3 is built to last for 270 clicks based on the CIPA specifications making it lesser compared with it's competition. The general Entry-Level Mirrorless camera battery life is 343. Fujifilm X-S20 offers the highest possible (750) battery life in this range of cameras.

Listed below is a listing of Entry-Level Mirrorless cameras having the strongest battery life:

ModelVisualizeBattery LifeRAWNFCBluetooth

Fujifilm X-S20
G3 vs X-S20750 yesnoyes

Samsung NX mini
G3 vs NX mini650 yesnono

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Pentax K-01
G3 vs K-01540 yesnono

Sony NEX-3N
G3 vs NEX-3N480 yesnono

Sony NEX-F3
G3 vs NEX-F3470 yesnono

The following bar chart gives a analysis of the Panasonic G3 for various kinds of photography. To look at more, scroll to the specific paragraph underneath.

The Panasonic G3 has a points total of 71 which is very good, meaning that it is a very decent choice to use for portrait images. Shooting portrait images favors heavily to sensor size, RAW support & ability to work with off-camera flash.

Coming in at a nice points total of 75, the Panasonic G3 is a fine option for street photography. A very good street photography camera gives a fine balance of image quality plus portability.

A decent sports photography rating of 47 suggests the Panasonic G3 is somewhat appropriate for shooting sports. A camera must have good autofocus and continuous shooting for sports photography.

Weight is very critical when selecting a travel camera. All things considered, the Panasonic G3 gets a above average 70 as a travel camera which is a very decent option to take with you on your travels.

For anybody looking to purchase a digital camera for landscape pictures, the most critical factor will no doubt be image quality. The Panasonic G3 with it's above average grade of 62 for a landscape camera is a good pick amongst it's competition.

A vlogging camera really should have a moving display, mic port and ideally IBIS. Considering every thing, the Panasonic G3 is a respectable pick for vlogging as it receives a above average rating of 70.

If you are looking for alternatives to the G3, here is a collection of the highest placed cameras that fall into the family of Entry-Level Mirrorless.

The line graph down below shows you an overview of the G3 compared to it's highest scoring competitors shown previously.

There are a bunch of cameras you may regard as alternative options. To browse through a detailed comparison, click the "compare" link.