OM System M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-45mm f/4 PRO
Announced February 12, 2020
PixelMeter The PixelMeter is our 1–100 aggregate of reviewer scores from trusted publications and creators. Weighted by source tier — not a raw average, and not PetaPixel’s own review.
Reviewer Consensus
Strong
The OM System M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-45mm f/4 PRO is a compact, weather-sealed standard zoom that delivers sharp optical performance and useful macro capabilities. While it lacks the speed and manual focus clutch found on larger professional lenses, it remains a highly portable and capable choice for everyday photography and videography.
Weighted from 13 reviewer scores
Pros
- High optical sharpness
- Durable weather-sealed construction
- Compact and lightweight design
- Effective macro functionality
- Quick and quiet autofocus
Cons
- Lacks manual focus clutch and custom buttons
- Modest f/4 maximum aperture
- Lack of internal image stabilization
- Susceptibility to flare
- Extending zoom mechanism
- Launch price $649 (USD)
- Focal length & aperture 12-45mm f/4
- Mount & coverage Micro Four Thirds Micro Four Thirds
- Stabilization None
- Close focus 12 cm (0.25x)
- Filter thread 58mm
- Weight & size 254g (9 oz) · 63.4 x 70 mm (2.50 x 2.76 in)
What the Reviewers Say
All 13 expert reviews, weighted into the PixelMeter score.
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[...] I was very impressed with the Olympus's image quality sharpness wise.
- OpticalLimits 7/10
The Olympus M.Zuiko ED 12-45mm f/4 PRO offers very high performance in a very small package.
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The Olympus 12-45mm f/4 PRO has excellent performance and should be more than enough for almost every application including landscape, portrait, and even wide-angle widlife (assuming the wildlife doesn’t want to eat you).
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Equally for Olympus users who already own and are happy with a 12-40mm f/2.8 or 12-40mm f/2.8 II, there’s no obvious reason to change.
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The Olympus M.Zuiko ED 12-45mm f/4.0 PRO lens is a very useful standard zoom with good solid performance.
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As a smaller, lighter, simpler and cheaper alternative to the flagship M.Zuiko Digital 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro zoom, the new M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-45mm f/4 Pro makes perfect sense for a lot of enthusiasts.
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The Olympus M.Zuiko 12-45mm f/4 Pro is an interesting proposition. It's a smaller and more affordable version of the 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro, sacrificing speed and functionality in favor of compactness and macro capability.
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The Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-45mm F4 Pro is sized perfectly for Micro Four Thirds cameras and includes weather protection, strong optical performance, and a very useful macro capability.
- Digital Trends 8/10
The smallest in its class, the Olympus 12-45mm f/4 is a breeze to shoot and carry with you.
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[O]therwise, this is a very good lens to replace your 12-40mm f/2.8 lens, or maybe not replace, but if you want a bit lighter and a bit cheaper option, this one is definitely for you.
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Like all other Olympus PRO lenses, it is difficult to find anything negative to write about the 12-45mm PRO lens.
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I like this lens a lot and it feels like it's a scaled down version of the 12-100mm f/4 Olympus lens, but I like this lens much more because it's so much smaller and I personally I don't need that 100 millimeter telephoto reach.
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It's a lens that I can highly recommend to anyone that is into videography or photography.
