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Sony A7S vs Olympus E-510 Comparison

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Sony A7S

12 MP | Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) CMOS Sensor

Sony A7S
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Olympus E-510

10 MP | Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) CMOS Sensor

Olympus E-510
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Sony A7S vs Olympus E-510 Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two cameras with different body types: Sony A7S, which was introduced in April 2014 is a Pro Mirrorless camera with a 12.0MP Full frame sensor whereas Olympus E-510, which was introduced in November 2007 is a Advanced DSLR camera with a 10.0MP Four Thirds sensor. As you can see, E-510 is 7 years older than A7S. Let's see if this age difference between two cameras makes a big difference.

Despite some fundamental differences of these two body types, Mirrorless cameras are becoming serious alternatives to DSLR cameras thanks to their size/weight advantages and recent improvements in their focus speeds , which makes this comparison even more interesting.

Here is a brief look at the main features of Sony A7S and Olympus E-510 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Sony A7S Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2014-04-06
  • 12MP - Full frame CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 409600
  • Sony E Mount
  • 3 Tilting Screen
  • 2359k dot Electronic viewfinder
  • 5 fps continuous shooting
  • 4K (UHD) - 3840 x 2160 video resolution
  • 120 fps High-Speed Video
  • Built-in Wireless
  • 489g. 127 x 94 x 48 mm
  • Weather Sealed Body

Olympus E-510 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2007-11-23
  • 10MP - Four Thirds CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • Four Thirds Mount
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 2.5" Fixed Type Screen
  • Optical (pentamirror) viewfinder
  • 3 fps continuous shooting
  • No Video Mode
  • 490g. 136 x 92 x 68 mm
  • Also known as EVOLT E-510
  • Replaced Olympus E-500 Compare

Sony A7S was replaced by Sony Alpha 7S II. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Sony Alpha 7S II vs Sony Alpha A7S
Sony Alpha 7S II vs Olympus E-510 / EVOLT E-510

Olympus E-510 was replaced by Olympus E-520. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Olympus E-520 vs Olympus E-510 / EVOLT E-510
Olympus E-520 vs Sony Alpha A7S

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Sony A7S and Olympus E-510 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Sony Alpha A7S over Olympus E-510
Wireless Connection
Built-In vs None Better connectivity
LCD Screen
Tilting vs Fixed Type Flexible shooting positions
Viewfinder Magnification
0.71x vs 0.46x Larger Viewfinder
Face Detection Focus
Yes vs No very handy for portraits
Max Sensor Resolution
12 MP vs 10 MP 19% more pixels
Max ISO
409.600 vs 1.600 25500% higher Max ISO
Number of Focus Points
25 vs 3 22 more focus points
LCD Screen Size
3 vs 2.5" 0.5 inches larger display
LCD Screen Resolution
1.230k dots vs 230k dots 434% higher resolution screen
Viewfinder Coverage
100% vs 95% More accurate viewfinder
Max Mech. Shutter
1/8000s vs 1/4000s faster mechanical shutter
Continuous Shooting
5.0fps vs 3.0fps 2 fps faster
Weight
489 g vs 490 g 1 g lighter
Microphone Port
Yes vs No High quality audio recording option
Headphone Port
Yes vs No better video control
Environmental Sealing
Yes vs No shoot at tough conditions
Color Depth
23.9 vs 21.2 higher color depth
Dynamic Range
13.2 vs 10.0 higher dynamic range
Low Light ISO
3702 vs 442 better High ISO performance
Sensor Pixel Area
71.24µm2 vs 22.54µm2 216% larger pixel area
Max Video Resolution
3840 x 2160 vs None Higher Resolution Video
AE Bracketing
Yes vs No Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR
NFC Connection
Yes vs No Easy wireless connectivity with compatible devices
Smartphone Remote
Yes vs No Remote control your camera with a smartphone


Reasons to choose Olympus E-510 over Sony Alpha A7S
Image Stabilization
Sensor-shift vs None Sharper images at longer focal lengths and long exposures
Built-in Flash
Yes vs No Useful in low-light

Common Strengths of Sony Alpha A7S and Olympus E-510
External Flash Shoe
Yes vs Yes Better for flash photography
Viewfinder
Yes (Electronic) vs Yes (Optical) Better framing and control
RAW Support
Yes vs Yes Better image quality
Common Weaknesses of Sony Alpha A7S and Olympus E-510
LCD Screen Size
3 vs 2.5" Small display
New4
Sony A7S vs Olympus E-510: Physical Specs and Body features Comparison

Size and weight is a big decision factor when you are trying to find the ideal camera for your needs. In this section, We are going to illustrate Sony A7S and Olympus E-510 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Sony A7S has external dimensions of 127 x 94 x 48 mm (5 x 3.7 x 1.89″) and weighs 489 g (1.08 lb / 17.25 oz) (including batteries). Olympus E-510 has external dimensions of 136 x 92 x 68 mm (5.35 x 3.62 x 2.68″) and weighs 490 g (1.08 lb / 17.28 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Sony A7S and Olympus E-510. Sony A7S is 9mm narrower and 20mm thinner than Olympus E-510 but it is also 2mm taller.

Sony A7S vs Olympus E-510 Camera Size Comparison - Front View
Comparison image of Sony A7S and Olympus E-510 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Here is the back view size comparison of Sony A7S and Olympus E-510.

Sony A7S vs Olympus E-510 Camera Size Comparison - Back View
Comparison image of Sony A7S and Olympus E-510 Size and Weight - Back View

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Sony A7S is 1g lighter than the Olympus E-510 but we don't think this will make a significant difference.

Also keep in mind that body weight is not the only deciding factor when comparing two interchangeable camera bodies, you have to also take into account the lenses that you will be using with these bodies. Since Sony A7S has a Full frame sensor and Olympus E-510 has a smaller Four Thirds sensor, Olympus E-510's lenses for a similar focal length and aperture will generally be lighter and smaller than the Sony A7S lenses.

Weight Comparison

DSLR Cameras

A7S
E-510
Min
Average
Max
Thickness Comparison

DSLR Cameras

A7S
E-510
Min
Average
Max

Weather Sealing

With its weather sealed body, we believe that A7S has a big advantage over E-510 which doesn't provide any kind of environmental sealing.

LCD Screen Size and Features

Sony A7S's 3 LCD screen is slightly larger than Olympus E-510's 2.5" screen.

In addition to the size advantage, Sony A7S LCD screen also has a Tilting feature where you can change the angle of the screen to make it easier to shoot from waist or over the head levels. On the other hand, Olympus E-510 has a fixed type screen which provides less flexibility in shooting positions compared to A7S.
Sony A7S vs Olympus E-510: Sensor Comparison

Sony A7S has a 12.0MP Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Bionz X processor. On the other hand, Olympus E-510 has a 10.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor .

Below you can see the A7S and E-510 sensor size comparison.

Sony A7S vs Olympus E-510 Sensor Size Comparison
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Sony A7S and Olympus E-510 Cameras


As seen above, Sony A7S has a 3.8x Larger sensor area than Olympus E-510. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.

DxOMark Sensor Scores

Both Sony A7S and Olympus E-510 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, A7S has scored 87, 35 points higher than E-510.

Model Overall Color Depth Dynamic Range Low-light ISO
Sony A7S 87 23.9 bits 13.2 Evs 3702 ISO
Olympus E-510 52 21.2 bits 10.0 Evs 442 ISO
Sony A7S vs Olympus E-510 Comparison of Available Lenses
Which camera has more lenses?

Number of available lenses is a big decision factor while choosing your interchangeable lens camera. When we look at the available lenses for these two cameras, we see that Sony A7S has an advantage over Olympus E-510. There are 128 lenses for Sony A7S's Sony E mount, on the other hand there are only 45 lenses for Olympus E-510's Four Thirds lens mount.

Another important factor is the availability of image stabilization. Olympus E-510 has a big advantage in this regard because it has a sensor based image stabilization which means that all the lenses mounted to this body will be stabilized. On the other hand, Sony A7S doesn't have this feature so you have to buy a lens with optical stabilization feature. Currently there are 31 lenses for Sony E mount with Optical Image Stabilization features.

Lens Type # of Sony A7S Lenses # of Olympus E-510 Lenses
Standard Zoom 12 (9 Full Frame) 8
Standard Prime 18 (9 Full Frame) 4
Wideangle Zoom 7 (6 Full Frame) 4
Wideangle Prime 42 (26 Full Frame) 9
Telephoto Zoom 9 (7 Full Frame) 6
Telephoto Prime 18 (14 Full Frame) 4
SuperZoom 8 (1 Full Frame) 2
Wideangle Fisheye Prime 2 (0 Full Frame) 3
Macro Prime 8 (7 Full Frame) 4
Perspective Control Prime 2 (2 Full Frame) n/a
Telephoto Mirror Prime n/a 1
TOTAL 128 (81 Full Frame) 45

What types of Photography are Sony A7S and Olympus E-510 Good for?
In this section, we rank and compare Sony A7S and Olympus E-510 for five different photography types in order to make your decision process easier in case you are specifically interested in one or more of these areas.

Sony A7S for Portrait Photography

GOOD

Olympus E-510 for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Very Low Resolution Sensor: 10.0MP
Read the details

Sony A7S for Street Photography

GOOD

Olympus E-510 for Street Photography

GOOD
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Tilting LCD Screen
Medium sized Body
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Large Body
Read the details

Sony A7S for Sports Photography

GOOD

Olympus E-510 for Sports Photography

GOOD
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/8000s
25 Focus Points
Good Low Light ISO
Wireless Connection
Average Continuous Shooting: 5.0fps
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
Slow Continuous Shooting: 3.0fps
Environmental Sealings
3 Focus Points
Read the details

Sony A7S for Daily Photography

EXCELLENT

Olympus E-510 for Daily Photography

GOOD
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Medium size Body
489g
Body Thickness 48mm
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Large Body
490g
Body Thickness 68mm
Read the details

Sony A7S for Landscape Photography

AVERAGE

Olympus E-510 for Landscape Photography

POOR
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Live-view
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Read the details
Large Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) sensor
Live-view
Very Low Resolution Sensor: 10.0MP
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Sony A7S vs Olympus E-510: OUR DECISION

You may have already made your decision about which camera suits better for your needs and your budget so far but in case you wonder how we rated Sony A7S and Olympus E-510, below you can find their scores in five different aspects. Our Decision Algorithm dynamically scores cameras using 63 different specs, current price and DxO Mark scores (where possible) in order to make a more objective and consistent comparison.

Here is a summary of how Sony A7S and Olympus E-510 scores compare:

Sony A7S
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #39 out of 87 in SLR-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #71 out of 1221 in all Cameras
Olympus E-510
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #62 out of 94 in Mid-size SLR cameras
Ranked #478 out of 1221 in all Cameras

Sony A7S is the clear winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Olympus E-510 in all criteria. It has better general image quality, more features, more compact body and offers more value for the money

Sony A7S
Sony A7S
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Olympus E-510
Olympus E-510
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Olympus E-510 vs Sony A7S Specs Table
Detailed comparison of specifications
General Sony Alpha A7S Olympus E-510
Brand Sony Olympus
Announced 2014-04-06 2007-11-23
Body Type SLR-style mirrorless Mid-size SLR
Sensor
Type CMOS CMOS
Size Full frame Four Thirds
Dimensions 35.8 x 23.9 mm 17.3 x 13 mm
Area 855.62mm2 224.90mm2
Megapixels 12 megapixels 10 megapixels
Max Resolution 4240 x 2832 3648 x 2736
Max Native Light sensitivity 409,600 ISO 1,600 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity 100 ISO 100 ISO
RAW Support
Autofocus
AF Touch
AF Continuous
AF Single
AF Tracking
AF Selective
AF Center
AF Multi Area
AF Live View
AF Face Detection
AF Contrast Detection
AF Phase Detection
Number of Focus Points 25 3
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount Sony E Four Thirds
Number of Available Lenses 128 45
Screen
Type Tilting Fixed type
Size 3 2.5"
Resolution 1,230k dots 230k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder Electronic Optical (pentamirror)
Viewfinder Resolution 2,359k dots no electronic viewfinder
Viewfinder Coverage 100% 95%
Viewfinder Magnification 0.71x 0.46x
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter 1/8000s 1/4000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization No Sensor-shift
Built-in Flash
Flash Range no built-in flash 12.00 m (at ISO 100)
Max Flash Sync n/a 1/180s
External Flash
Continuous Shooting 5.0 fps 3.0 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution 3840 x 2160 None
Video Formats MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC n/a
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity Built-In None
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight 489g 490g
Dimensions 127 x 94 x 48mm 136 x 92 x 68mm
Battery Life 360 shots n/a
Other Features
Timelapse Recording With Downloadable App
GPS None None
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score 87 52
DxO Color Depth 23.9 21.2
DxO Dynamic Range 13.2 10.0
DxO Low Light ISO 3702 442
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