The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Olympus ED 12mm f2 and the Olympus 15mm F8.0 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. Olympus ED 12mm f2 is the longer of the two lenses at 43mm. The Olympus 15mm F8.0 with a length of 9mm, is 34mm 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. Olympus 15mm F8.0 weighs 22g, 83% (108g) lighter than the Olympus ED 12mm f2's weight of 130g.
Below you can find the dimension and weight table of the Wideangle Prime Lenses in Micro Four Thirds Mount for size comparison purposes.
Wideangle Lenses in Micro Four Thirds Mount for Size Comparison
Lens Mounts
Both the Olympus ED 12mm f2 and the Olympus 15mm F8.0 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 12mm f2 is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 12mm which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of
24mm when used on a FourThirds format camera.
On the other hand, the Olympus 15mm F8.0 is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 15mm which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 30mm when used on a FourThirds format camera.