Panasonic GF3 has a
12.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Venus Engine FHD processor. On the other hand, Olympus E-PL5 has a
16.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor .
Below you can see the GF3 and E-PL5 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Panasonic GF3 and Olympus E-PL5 Cameras
Panasonic GF3 and Olympus E-PL5 have the same sensor sizes so they will provide same level of control over the depth of field when used with same focal length and aperture. On the other hand, since Panasonic GF3 has 32% larger pixel area compared to Olympus E-PL5, it has potential to collect more light on pixel level hence have less noise in low light / High ISO images.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
DxOMark is a benchmark that scientifically assesses image quality of camera sensors. It scores camera sensors for color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape) and low-light sensitivity (DXO Sports), and also gives them an overall score. Panasonic GF3 and Olympus E-PL5 sensors have been tested by DxO and the results show that E-PL5 has a better overall score of 72, 22 points higher compared to GF3's score of 50.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Panasonic GF3
50
20.6 bits
10.1 Evs
459 ISO
Olympus E-PL5
72
22.8 bits
12.3 Evs
889 ISO
Sensor size sets the circle of confusion, so it drives how much depth of field each
of these bodies gives you at a given aperture. You can calculate it exactly for the
Panasonic GF3
or the
Olympus E-PL5 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
