The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro and the Panasonic 12-60mm F2.8-4.0 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. Panasonic 12-60mm F2.8-4.0 is the longer of the two lenses at 86mm. The Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro with a length of 70mm, is 16mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Panasonic 12-60mm F2.8-4.0 also has a larger diameter of 68mm compared to the Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro's 63mm diameter.
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Below you can find a scaled side-by-side image of Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro and Panasonic 12-60mm F2.8-4.0 to get a better idea of how their sizes compare in real life.
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. Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro weighs 254g, which means it is 66g (20%) lighter than the Panasonic 12-60mm F2.8-4.0 which has a weight of 320g.
Below you can find the dimension and weight table of the Standard Zoom Lenses in Micro Four Thirds Mount for size comparison purposes.
Standard Lenses in Micro Four Thirds Mount for Size Comparison
Filter Threads
The Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro has a filter size of 58mm whereas the Panasonic 12-60mm F2.8-4.0 has a 62mm diameter. Larger filters are generally more expensive than the smaller ones given all the other features are equal.
Below are links to the 58mm filters that we recommend you to consider for the Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro:
And these are the 62mm filters that we recommend for the Panasonic 12-60mm F2.8-4.0:
Lens Mounts
Both the Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro and the Panasonic 12-60mm F2.8-4.0 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-1 II, Panasonic G9 II and OM System OM-5.
Focal Range
Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro has a focal range of 12-45mm and
3.8X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of
24-90mm when used on a FourThirds format camera.
On the other hand, the Panasonic 12-60mm F2.8-4.0 has a focal range of 12-60mm and 5.0X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 24-120mm when used on a FourThirds format camera.