Sony A3000 has a
20.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features BIONZ processor. On the other hand, Panasonic GX850 has a
16.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Venus Engine processor.
One other difference between these two cameras that is worth mentioning is that Panasonic GX850'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 A3000 and GX850 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Sony A3000 and Panasonic GX850 Cameras
As seen above, Sony A3000 has a 1.6x Larger sensor area than Panasonic GX850. 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 A3000 and Panasonic GX850 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, A3000 has scored 78, 5 points higher than GX850.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Sony A3000
78
23.7 bits
12.8 Evs
1068 ISO
Panasonic GX850
73
23.2 bits
13.3 Evs
586 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
Sony A3000
or the
Panasonic GX850 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
One thing to watch when comparing these two: they have different sensor sizes
(APS-C versus Four Thirds),
so compare them at the same framing rather than the same focal length.
Put the same focal length on the smaller sensor and it will show less depth of
field, not more, because it also crops tighter. The calculator shows the
full frame equivalent focal length for each body so you can match the framing.
