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 12-32mm 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. Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro is the longer of the two lenses at 70mm. The Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Mega OIS with a length of 24mm, is 46mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro also has a larger diameter of 63mm compared to the Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Mega OIS's 56mm diameter.
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, 72% (184g) lighter than the Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro's weight of 254g.
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 12-32mm 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 58mm filters that we recommend you to consider for the Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro:
And these are the 37mm filters that we recommend for the Panasonic 12-32mm F3.5-5.6 Mega OIS:
Lens Mounts
Both the Olympus ED 12-45mm F4 Pro 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
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 12-32mm 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.
