The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Olympus ED 7-14mm F2.8 PRO and the Panasonic 8-18mm F2.8-4.0 ASPH 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 7-14mm F2.8 PRO is the longer of the two lenses at 106mm. The Panasonic 8-18mm F2.8-4.0 ASPH with a length of 88mm, is 18mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Olympus ED 7-14mm F2.8 PRO also has a larger diameter of 79mm compared to the Panasonic 8-18mm F2.8-4.0 ASPH's 73mm diameter.
Below you can find a scaled side-by-side image of Olympus ED 7-14mm F2.8 PRO and Panasonic 8-18mm F2.8-4.0 ASPH to get a better idea of how their sizes compare in real life.
Comparison image of the Olympus ED 7-14mm F2.8 PRO and the Panasonic 8-18mm F2.8-4.0 ASPH Size and Weight 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 8-18mm F2.8-4.0 ASPH weighs 315g, 41% (219g) lighter than the Olympus ED 7-14mm F2.8 PRO's weight of 534g.
Below you can find the dimension and weight table of the Wideangle Zoom Lenses in Micro Four Thirds Mount for size comparison purposes.
Ultra-Wideangle Micro Four Thirds Mount
Lens Mounts
Both the Olympus ED 7-14mm F2.8 PRO and the Panasonic 8-18mm F2.8-4.0 ASPH 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 7-14mm F2.8 PRO has a focal range of 7-14mm and
2.0X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of
14-28mm when used on a FourThirds format camera.
On the other hand, the Panasonic 8-18mm F2.8-4.0 ASPH has a focal range of 8-18mm and 2.3X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 16-36mm when used on a FourThirds format camera.
