Cheese Knife Up Close

Don't tell Paladian but this subject came from the kitchen drawer. I have been fooling around with the M.Zuiko weatherproof 12-50mm zoom lens, trying out its macro capability. In particular I was interested in comparing its performance to the Canon G12's fixed lens in that regard. All technical averse blippers might like to skip the next paragraph.

Generally I'd have to say that the Zuiko will get you closer but because it is set to shoot macros at a full frame equivalent of 86mm (telephoto) and because the OMD's four thirds sensor is very much larger than the G12's (shooting macros at the full frame equivalent of only 28mm, wide angle) it offers much less inherent depth of field and much less margin for error.

In short, if you want to do it quickly and easily ... use the G12. If you want to get a bit closer and are prepared to sweat a little, use the Zuiko 12-50mm. I'll probably be using the G12 for this sort of thing on account of the fact that I suffer from clinically diagnosed laziness. At flowerhead or gnarly wire distances though, I'd reckon the Zuiko would be better because the OMD body offers much cleverer manual focusing and the dof at that distance is a nice compromise.

In the end, both of those solutions are rough and ready compromises at best but they still make a fair fist of casual macros and remain in the realm of fun rather than hard work.