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The Panasonic Lumix S9, Fujifilm X-M5, and OM System PEN sell at similar prices in 2026, yet each uses a different sensor format: full frame, APS-C, and Micro Four Thirds. If you're moving up from a phone to a camera you'll carry every day, that price overlap makes the decision harder than any spec sheet suggests.
Most buying advice says a bigger sensor makes better pictures. Jimmy Cheng has shot extensively with all three bodies and argues that format size is mostly academic for everyday work. In his view, how you read light and time a shot does far more than sensor area. Any of the three will take excellent pictures if you're coming from a phone. He starts with the full frame Panasonic Lumix S9, a body so small it barely differs in size from the other two. Cheng didn't like it at launch because it felt overpriced and had almost no compact lenses to pair with it. A lower street price and a steady stream of small primes from Panasonic, Sigma, and Viltrox have changed that.
The S9's limits show up once you're outside. There's no viewfinder, so you compose on the rear screen, which can be hard to see in bright sun. There's no weather-sealing either. The camera uses only an electronic shutter that tops out at 1/8,000 s. With an f/1.8 or f/2 prime on a sunny day, you can run out of shutter speed even at base ISO. The Fujifilm X-M5 handles this better. It has a mechanical shutter for stills and an electronic shutter that reaches 1/32,000 s, which gives you room to shoot an f/1.2 lens wide open in daylight. Cheng also found its autofocus quicker and more accurate than the Fujifilm X-T5 in side-by-side use, even though the X-T5 has the higher-resolution sensor.
The X-M5 still has no viewfinder, no in-body stabilization, and no weather-sealing, so it stays home on a wet day. Its electronic stabilization works with wide lenses, but Cheng finds it ineffective at anything tighter than about a 50mm-equivalent field of view. Fujifilm's film simulations remain a strong draw if you shoot JPEGs. The OM System PEN costs about the same and adds an electronic viewfinder. Cheng's reasons for wanting one are practical. Rear screens get reflective or too dim in hard light, while an eyepiece shades the display, so you can still judge composition and exposure.
Many camera makers now drop the viewfinder to shrink a body and lower its price, and that choice fits how a lot of newer shooters work. The Sony ZV-E10 and Sony ZV-E1 skip it, and the S9 and X-M5 aim at people who already frame everything on a phone screen. Fujifilm has also gone the other direction. The Fujifilm X-E5 puts a viewfinder and in-body stabilization into a compact body at a higher price. To choose between these designs, think about where your daily shooting actually happens. If most of it is indoors, at dusk, or in open shade, a rear screen works well, and a flip-out display makes low angles and family selfies easy. If you spend long afternoons in direct sun, or you live somewhere with frequent rain, an eyepiece and sealing become tools you use every day. Lenses shape the kit as much as the body does. A small full frame body still needs full frame glass, so check the actual size of the primes you plan to carry before you commit to a system.
Beyond the viewfinder, the PEN uses the sensor and processor from the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III. Cheng used that camera professionally for years and shot well over 200,000 frames with it. He rates the PEN's face tracking among the best in OM System's lineup, which helps when you're following kids who won't stand still. In-body stabilization lets you use slower shutter speeds handheld. It also supports computational tools like Live Composite, Live Bulb, and Starry Sky AF, which give you room to experiment as your skills develop. Cheng also tests the PEN in steady rain and explains how its smaller sensor holds up in low light once a fast prime and stabilization are working together.
Which camera Cheng would pick to carry every day is in the video above.
English (US) ·