The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the OM System 25mm F1.8 II and the Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Mega OIS for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
The size of a lens is a crucial factor to consider when comparing two lenses. OM System 25mm F1.8 II is the longer of the two lenses at 41mm. The Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Mega OIS with a length of 24mm, is 17mm shorter. On the other hand, there is no difference between the max diameters of these lenses, both coming at 56mm.
The weight of a lens is equally significant as its external dimensions, particularly if you intend to handhold your camera and lens combination for extended periods. Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Mega OIS weighs 70g, 55% (86g) lighter than the OM System 25mm F1.8 II's weight of 156g.
Filter Threads
The OM System 25mm F1.8 II has a filter size of 46mm whereas the Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Mega OIS has a 37mm diameter. Larger filters are generally more expensive than the smaller ones given all the other features are equal.
Below are links to the 46mm filters that we recommend you to consider for the OM System 25mm F1.8 II:
And these are the 37mm filters that we recommend for the Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Mega OIS:
Lens Mounts
Both the OM System 25mm F1.8 II and the Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Mega OIS has the same Micro Four Thirds lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with the Micro Four Thirds lenses are OM System OM-3 Astro, OM System OM-5 II and OM System OM-3.
Focal Range
OM System 25mm F1.8 II is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 25mm which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of
50mm when used on a FourThirds format camera.
On the other hand, the Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Mega OIS has a focal range of 12-32mm and 2.7X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 24-64mm when used on a FourThirds format camera.
