Olympus OM-D E-M5 vs Panasonic Lumix GH3

We now have a final version of the new Panasonic Lumix GH3, and compare it to the Olympus OM-D E-M5, both Micro Four Thirds cameras, both with a 16 megapixel sensor, and both with a weather sealed SLR styled body, although one with more retro styling. The sensor in the GH3 is strongly rumoured to be the same 16 megapixel Sony sensor as used in the Olympus OM-D E-M5, so it will be interesting to see how the two cameras perform.

Panasonic Lumix GH3	Olympus OM-D E-M5
16 megapixel sensor	16 megapixel sensor
3 inch OLED 614k dot touch-screen	3 inch OLED 610k dot touch-screen
Swivelling / Rotating to face front	Tilting up and down
6fps continuous shooting	9fps continuous shooting
Full HD, 72mbps, AVCHD, MOV, MP4	Full HD, MOV, 720p MJPEG
Stereo mics, mic socket, headphone socket	Stereo mics, accessory port for microphone etc
ISO range 200-25600 (extended to 125)	ISO range 200-25600 (Lowest ISO200)
1.744 million dot EVF	1.44 million dot EVF
HDR shooting, Multi-exposure	Multi-exposure
Wi-Fi built in	N/A
£1200 - £1549 body only	£999 body only

Size difference: The GH3 is larger than the GH2 it replaces, and features weather sealing like the OM-D. The size difference is quite noticeable, with the GH3 having a larger grip with a more DSLR styled look and design.

	Panasonic Lumix GH3	Olympus OM-D E-M5
Width	132.9mm	121mm
Height	93.4mm	89.6mm
Depth	82mm	41.9mm
Weight	550g	373g

EVF and screen differences - both cameras feature a 3 inch OLED touch screen, with VGA equivalent resolution (610k dots on the Olympus, 614k dots on the Panasonic). They both feature an EVF (electronic viewfinder), with the Olympus featuring a 1.44 million dot resolution viewfinder made by Epson, while the Panasonic features a 1.744 million dot OLED viewfinder.



Battery life difference: The Panasonic Lumix GH3 offers a battery life rating of 540 shots, while the Olympus OM-D E-M5 offers 330 shots. Both have an optional battery grip available to increase battery life, although the OM-D is a two part grip so you can add just the first part for an improved handgrip, without adding too much to the weight and size of the camera.

Olympus OM-D E-M5 ISO test images

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 ISO test images

Olympus OM-D E-M5 White-balance test images

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 White-balance test images

Low Light Full HD Sample videos: Starting with the Panasonic Lumix GH3 with the 14-45mm lens using Optical Image Stabilisation.

Olympus OM-D E-M5 with Panasonic 14-140mm lens, optical IS switched off, in-body IS used. We also recorded videos with the lenses swapped over to see if this caused any or much difference and very little was seen.

For more sample photos, have a look at the Pansonic Lumix GH3 sample photos
For more on the Olympus OM-D E-M5 read our full review.