Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 vs Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4

In this comparison, we will evaluate the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4, highlighting the advantages of each over the other, discussing their pros and cons, shared strengths and weaknesses, and providing a rating based on their available features and specifications to assist you in choosing the one that best suits your needs.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 was introduced in September 2012 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 was introduced in February 2014. Let us first list highlights of the models.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these cameras, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 over Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 over Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Screen

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 have 3.0" Fully Articulated screens with 614k dot and 1,036k dot resolutions respectively. Fully articulated screen makes cameras selfie and vlogger friendly and generally very useful for video shooting. Both models feature touchscreen which has advantages such as easy menu navigation, intuitive controls, quick setting adjustment and most importantly a Touch-to-Focus functionality allowing users to select a specific point on the screen where they want the camera to focus. This feature can be helpful for achieving precise focus in both photo and video recording.

Viewfinder

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 has a built-in Electronic viewfinder with 1,744k dot resolution and Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 has a built-in Electronic viewfinder with 2,359k dot resolution. They both have 100% coverage and 1.34x (0.67x 35mm equivalent) magnification.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 features a 16.05 megapixel Micro Four Thirds CMOS sensor with dimensions of 17.3 x 13 mm and a total area of 224.9 mm². Its native ISO range is 200 - 12,800. Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 features a 16.05 megapixel Micro Four Thirds CMOS sensor with dimensions of 17.3 x 13 mm and a total area of 169 mm². Its native ISO range is 200 - 25,600.

Here is a sensor size comparison chart where you can see how different sensors compare with each other:

Sensor size chart

	Sensor	Dimensions	Area	Aspect Ratio	Crop Factor
	Medium Format	44 x 33 mm	1452 mm2	4:3	0.79x
	Full Frame	36 x 24 mm	864 mm2	3:2	1x
	APS-H	27 x 18 mm	486 mm2	3:2	1.3x
	APS-C	23.6 x 15.6 mm	368.2 mm2	3:2	1.5x
	APS-C (Canon)	22.3 x 14.9 mm	332.3 mm2	3:2	1.6x
	Micro Four Thirds	17.4 x 13 mm	226.2 mm2	4:3	2x
	1-inch	13.2 x 8.8 mm	116.2 mm2	3:2	2.7x
	1/1.7-inch	7.44 x 5.58 mm	41.5 mm2	4:3	4.7x
	1/2.3-inch	6.17 x 4.55 mm	28.1 mm2	4:3	5.6x

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 is equipped with Venus Engine VII FHD processor and can take pictures up to 4608 x 3456 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 4608x3072, 3264x2448, 2336x1752, 4608x3072, 3264x2176, 2336x1560, 4608x2592, 3264x1840, 1920x1080, 3456x3456, 2448x2448, 1744x1744, 1712x1712 with 1:1, 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios. Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 is equipped with Venus Engine IX processor and can take pictures up to 4608 x 3456 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 4608 x 3072, 4608 x 2592, 3456 x 3456, 3264 x 2448, 3264 x 2176, 2448 x 2448, 2336 x 1752, 2356 x 1560, 1920 x 1080, 1744 x 1744, 1824 x 1368, 1824 x 1216, 1824 x 1024, 1712 x 1712 with 1:1, 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios.

Lens Mount

Cameras have Micro Four Thirds lens mount. Due to their Micro Four Thirds sensor their crop factor (also called lens multiplier) is equal to 2x. This means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 2.

No Image Stabilization

The cameras do not have image stabilization. On Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 nothing can be done. On Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 nothing can be done.

Built-in Wi-Fi

Cameras have built-in Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n, 2.4 GHz) which allows to easily transfer photos and videos from the camera to other Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as smartphones, tablets, printers, or computers. This eliminates the need for cables and allows for quick and convenient media sharing and social media integration. It gives you the ability to control your camera remotely using a smartphone or tablet. This is particularly useful for taking self-portraits, group shots, or capturing images in challenging conditions without having to touch the camera. Firmware updates can also be downloaded and installed wirelessly.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in WiFi.

USB Inputs and HDMI Outputs

Both models have USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) inputs for data transfer. Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 has a Mini Type C HDMI and Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 has a Micro HDMI connector for video signal output.

Battery

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 comes with DMW-BLF19 battery pack with battery life of 500 shots.

External Storage Slots

Cameras have a single SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I) card slot.

Shutter

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 has Mechanical Focal Plane shutter and Electronic shutter. Shutter speed can go up to 1/4000 sec on Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3, and up to 1/8000 sec on Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4. Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 can shoot continuously up to 20.0 fps. Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 can shoot continuously up to 12.0 fps.

Focusing

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 has 23 focusing points and Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 has 49 focusing points. Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 has detection range from -4 to +18 EV.

Exposure

Both cameras' exposure metering ranges from 0 to +18 EV and you can set the exposure compensation within the ±5 EV range. You can also do exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 and exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4.

Flash

Cameras have built-in flash with maximum range of 12.00 m on Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 and 17.00 m at ISO 200 on Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4. They also accept external flash which can be connected via Hot Shoe. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/160 sec on Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 and 1/250 sec on Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 body has dimensions of 133 x 93 x 82 mm (5.24 x 3.66 x 3.23") and Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 body has dimensions of 133 x 93 x 84 mm (5.24 x 3.66 x 3.31"). Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3 weighs 550 g (1.21 lb / 19.40 oz) and Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4 weighs 560 g (1.23 lb / 19.75 oz).

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH4

133 mm

93 mm

133 mm

93 mm

93 mm

93 mm

82 mm

84 mm