Panasonic GX8 has a
20.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Venus Engine processor. On the other hand, Panasonic G85 has a
16.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor .
One other difference between these two cameras that is worth mentioning is that Panasonic G85's sensor doesn't have an anti-alias (Low-Pass) filter. Removing anti-alias filter increases the sharpness and level of detail but at the same time, it increases the chance of moiré occurring in certain scenes.
Below you can see the GX8 and G85 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Panasonic GX8 and Panasonic G85 Cameras
Panasonic GX8 and Panasonic G85 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 G85 has 27% larger pixel area (14.21µm 2 vs 11.16µm 2 ) compared to Panasonic GX8, it has larger pixel area to collect light hence potential to have less noise in low light / High ISO images.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
Both Panasonic GX8 and Panasonic G85 sensors have been tested by DxoMark. DxoMark 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. Of the two cameras that we are comparing, GX8 has scored 75, 4 points higher than G85.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Panasonic GX8
75
23.5 bits
12.6 Evs
806 ISO
Panasonic G85
71
22.8 bits
12.5 Evs
656 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 GX8
or the
Panasonic G85 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
