diff --git a/controllers/redirect_controller.go b/controllers/redirect_controller.go
index 8f0eaf3..911ebeb 100644
--- a/controllers/redirect_controller.go
+++ b/controllers/redirect_controller.go
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ import (
 
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/attribute"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 	networkingv1 "k8s.io/api/networking/v1"
 	k8serrors "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/errors"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime"
@@ -33,7 +34,6 @@ import (
 	redirectclient "github.com/cedi/urlshortener/pkg/client"
 	"github.com/cedi/urlshortener/pkg/observability"
 	redirectpkg "github.com/cedi/urlshortener/pkg/redirect"
-	"github.com/go-logr/logr"
 	"github.com/pkg/errors"
 )
 
@@ -43,17 +43,17 @@ type RedirectReconciler struct {
 	rClient *redirectclient.RedirectClient
 
 	scheme *runtime.Scheme
-	log    *logr.Logger
+	zapLog *zap.Logger
 	tracer trace.Tracer
 }
 
 // NewRedirectReconciler returns a new RedirectReconciler
-func NewRedirectReconciler(client client.Client, rClient *redirectclient.RedirectClient, scheme *runtime.Scheme, log *logr.Logger, tracer trace.Tracer) *RedirectReconciler {
+func NewRedirectReconciler(client client.Client, rClient *redirectclient.RedirectClient, scheme *runtime.Scheme, zapLog *zap.Logger, tracer trace.Tracer) *RedirectReconciler {
 	return &RedirectReconciler{
 		client:  client,
 		rClient: rClient,
 		scheme:  scheme,
-		log:     log,
+		zapLog:  zapLog,
 		tracer:  tracer,
 	}
 }
@@ -86,7 +86,7 @@ func (r *RedirectReconciler) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, req ctrl.Request) (c
 
 	span.SetAttributes(attribute.String("redirect", req.NamespacedName.String()))
 
-	log := r.log.WithName("reconciler").WithValues("redirect", req.NamespacedName)
+	log := r.zapLog.Sugar().With(zap.String("name", "reconciler"), zap.String("redirect", req.NamespacedName.String()))
 
 	// Monitor the number of redirects
 	if redirectList, err := r.rClient.List(ctx); redirectList != nil && err == nil {
@@ -100,19 +100,19 @@ func (r *RedirectReconciler) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, req ctrl.Request) (c
 			// Request object not found, could have been deleted after reconcile request.
 			// Owned objects are automatically garbage collected. For additional cleanup logic use finalizers.
 			// Return and don't requeue
-			observability.RecordInfo(span, &log, "Shortlink resource not found. Ignoring since object must be deleted")
+			observability.RecordInfo(span, log, "Shortlink resource not found. Ignoring since object must be deleted")
 			return ctrl.Result{}, nil
 		}
 
 		// Error reading the object - requeue the request.
-		observability.RecordError(span, &log, err, "Failed to fetch Redirect resource")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to fetch Redirect resource")
 		return ctrl.Result{}, err
 	}
 
 	// Check if the ingress already exists, if not create a new one
 	ingress, err := r.upsertRedirectIngress(ctx, redirect)
 	if err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, &log, err, "Failed to upsert redirect ingress")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to upsert redirect ingress")
 	}
 
 	// Update the Redirect status with the ingress name and the target
@@ -123,7 +123,7 @@ func (r *RedirectReconciler) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, req ctrl.Request) (c
 	}
 
 	if err = r.client.List(ctx, ingressList, listOpts...); err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, &log, err, "Failed to list ingresses")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to list ingresses")
 		return ctrl.Result{}, err
 	}
 
@@ -132,7 +132,7 @@ func (r *RedirectReconciler) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, req ctrl.Request) (c
 	redirect.Status.Target = ingress.ObjectMeta.Annotations["nginx.ingress.kubernetes.io/permanent-redirect"]
 	err = r.client.Status().Update(ctx, redirect)
 	if err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, &log, err, "Failed to update Redirect status")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to update Redirect status")
 		return ctrl.Result{}, err
 	}
 
diff --git a/controllers/shortlink_controller.go b/controllers/shortlink_controller.go
index c7ea8ea..cc3e1d4 100644
--- a/controllers/shortlink_controller.go
+++ b/controllers/shortlink_controller.go
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ import (
 
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/attribute"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/errors"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime"
@@ -30,23 +31,22 @@ import (
 	v1alpha1 "github.com/cedi/urlshortener/api/v1alpha1"
 	shortlinkclient "github.com/cedi/urlshortener/pkg/client"
 	"github.com/cedi/urlshortener/pkg/observability"
-	"github.com/go-logr/logr"
 )
 
 // ShortLinkReconciler reconciles a ShortLink object
 type ShortLinkReconciler struct {
 	client *shortlinkclient.ShortlinkClient
 	scheme *runtime.Scheme
-	log    *logr.Logger
+	zapLog *zap.Logger
 	tracer trace.Tracer
 }
 
 // NewShortLinkReconciler returns a new ShortLinkReconciler
-func NewShortLinkReconciler(client *shortlinkclient.ShortlinkClient, scheme *runtime.Scheme, log *logr.Logger, tracer trace.Tracer) *ShortLinkReconciler {
+func NewShortLinkReconciler(client *shortlinkclient.ShortlinkClient, scheme *runtime.Scheme, zapLog *zap.Logger, tracer trace.Tracer) *ShortLinkReconciler {
 	return &ShortLinkReconciler{
 		client: client,
 		scheme: scheme,
-		log:    log,
+		zapLog: zapLog,
 		tracer: tracer,
 	}
 }
@@ -76,15 +76,15 @@ func (r *ShortLinkReconciler) Reconcile(ctx context.Context, req ctrl.Request) (
 
 	span.SetAttributes(attribute.String("shortlink", req.Name))
 
-	log := r.log.WithName("reconciler").WithValues("shortlink", req.NamespacedName.String())
+	log := r.zapLog.Sugar().With(zap.String("name", "reconciler"), zap.String("shortlink", req.NamespacedName.String()))
 
 	// Get ShortLink from etcd
 	shortlink, err := r.client.GetNamespaced(ctx, req.NamespacedName)
 	if err != nil || shortlink == nil {
 		if errors.IsNotFound(err) {
-			observability.RecordInfo(span, &log, "Shortlink resource not found. Ignoring since object must be deleted")
+			observability.RecordInfo(span, log, "Shortlink resource not found. Ignoring since object must be deleted")
 		} else {
-			observability.RecordError(span, &log, err, "Failed to fetch ShortLink resource")
+			observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to fetch ShortLink resource")
 		}
 	}
 
diff --git a/go.mod b/go.mod
index 66bee27..5cd3feb 100644
--- a/go.mod
+++ b/go.mod
@@ -13,12 +13,12 @@ require (
 	github.com/swaggo/gin-swagger v1.5.3
 	github.com/swaggo/swag v1.8.10
 	go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/github.com/gin-gonic/gin/otelgin v0.39.0
-	go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp v0.40.0
-	go.opentelemetry.io/otel v1.15.1
+	go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp v0.42.0
+	go.opentelemetry.io/otel v1.16.0
 	go.opentelemetry.io/otel/exporters/otlp/otlptrace v1.15.1
 	go.opentelemetry.io/otel/exporters/otlp/otlptrace/otlptracehttp v1.15.1
 	go.opentelemetry.io/otel/sdk v1.15.1
-	go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace v1.15.1
+	go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace v1.16.0
 	golang.org/x/exp v0.0.0-20230304125523-9ff063c70017
 	k8s.io/api v0.26.2
 	k8s.io/apimachinery v0.26.2
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ require (
 
 require (
 	github.com/felixge/httpsnoop v1.0.3 // indirect
-	go.opentelemetry.io/otel/metric v0.37.0 // indirect
+	go.opentelemetry.io/otel/metric v1.16.0 // indirect
 )
 
 require (
@@ -83,10 +83,12 @@ require (
 	github.com/spf13/pflag v1.0.5 // indirect
 	github.com/twitchyliquid64/golang-asm v0.15.1 // indirect
 	github.com/ugorji/go/codec v1.2.9 // indirect
+	github.com/uptrace/opentelemetry-go-extra/otelutil v0.2.1 // indirect
+	github.com/uptrace/opentelemetry-go-extra/otelzap v0.2.1 // indirect
 	go.opentelemetry.io/otel/exporters/otlp/internal/retry v1.15.1 // indirect
 	go.opentelemetry.io/proto/otlp v0.19.0 // indirect
-	go.uber.org/atomic v1.10.0 // indirect
-	go.uber.org/multierr v1.9.0 // indirect
+	go.uber.org/atomic v1.11.0 // indirect
+	go.uber.org/multierr v1.11.0 // indirect
 	go.uber.org/zap v1.24.0 // indirect
 	golang.org/x/arch v0.0.0-20210923205945-b76863e36670 // indirect
 	golang.org/x/crypto v0.6.0 // indirect
diff --git a/go.sum b/go.sum
index 46ca070..3271fb7 100644
--- a/go.sum
+++ b/go.sum
@@ -387,6 +387,10 @@ github.com/ugorji/go v1.2.7/go.mod h1:nF9osbDWLy6bDVv/Rtoh6QgnvNDpmCalQV5urGCCS6
 github.com/ugorji/go/codec v1.2.7/go.mod h1:WGN1fab3R1fzQlVQTkfxVtIBhWDRqOviHU95kRgeqEY=
 github.com/ugorji/go/codec v1.2.9 h1:rmenucSohSTiyL09Y+l2OCk+FrMxGMzho2+tjr5ticU=
 github.com/ugorji/go/codec v1.2.9/go.mod h1:UNopzCgEMSXjBc6AOMqYvWC1ktqTAfzJZUZgYf6w6lg=
+github.com/uptrace/opentelemetry-go-extra/otelutil v0.2.1 h1:qjljyY//UH064+gQDHh5U7M1Jh6b+iQpJUWVAuRJ04A=
+github.com/uptrace/opentelemetry-go-extra/otelutil v0.2.1/go.mod h1:7YSrHCmYPHIXjTWnKSU7EGT0TFEcm3WwSeQquwCGg38=
+github.com/uptrace/opentelemetry-go-extra/otelzap v0.2.1 h1:HhKd/kmL1JuBK3zPr3gT/Ku7lvvBsnsy8NtQ+uG5rRM=
+github.com/uptrace/opentelemetry-go-extra/otelzap v0.2.1/go.mod h1:GiIWZ+UVlFnAik/QCTc7TjsLA+YV1m94ls3G1Q7fKRY=
 github.com/urfave/cli/v2 v2.3.0/go.mod h1:LJmUH05zAU44vOAcrfzZQKsZbVcdbOG8rtL3/XcUArI=
 github.com/xeipuuv/gojsonpointer v0.0.0-20180127040702-4e3ac2762d5f/go.mod h1:N2zxlSyiKSe5eX1tZViRH5QA0qijqEDrYZiPEAiq3wU=
 github.com/xeipuuv/gojsonreference v0.0.0-20180127040603-bd5ef7bd5415/go.mod h1:GwrjFmJcFw6At/Gs6z4yjiIwzuJ1/+UwLxMQDVQXShQ=
@@ -406,10 +410,14 @@ go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/github.com/gin-gonic/gin/otelgin v0.
 go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/github.com/gin-gonic/gin/otelgin v0.39.0/go.mod h1:dbx2pPD/jZWsnCz7ogHKY2mmHHnRU4bkjOVsw1V8x/o=
 go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp v0.40.0 h1:lE9EJyw3/JhrjWH/hEy9FptnalDQgj7vpbgC2KCCCxE=
 go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp v0.40.0/go.mod h1:pcQ3MM3SWvrA71U4GDqv9UFDJ3HQsW7y5ZO3tDTlUdI=
+go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp v0.42.0 h1:pginetY7+onl4qN1vl0xW/V/v6OBZ0vVdH+esuJgvmM=
+go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp v0.42.0/go.mod h1:XiYsayHc36K3EByOO6nbAXnAWbrUxdjUROCEeeROOH8=
 go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/propagators/b3 v1.14.0 h1:0SBc35DESy/YXShxFtu3634OwcEWJoGzSA8Hx/NbOo8=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel v1.7.0/go.mod h1:5BdUoMIz5WEs0vt0CUEMtSSaTSHBBVwrhnz7+nrD5xk=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel v1.15.1 h1:3Iwq3lfRByPaws0f6bU3naAqOR1n5IeDWd9390kWHa8=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel v1.15.1/go.mod h1:mHHGEHVDLal6YrKMmk9LqC4a3sF5g+fHfrttQIB1NTc=
+go.opentelemetry.io/otel v1.16.0 h1:Z7GVAX/UkAXPKsy94IU+i6thsQS4nb7LviLpnaNeW8s=
+go.opentelemetry.io/otel v1.16.0/go.mod h1:vl0h9NUa1D5s1nv3A5vZOYWn8av4K8Ml6JDeHrT/bx4=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/exporters/otlp/internal/retry v1.15.1 h1:XYDQtNzdb2T4uM1pku2m76eSMDJgqhJ+6KzkqgQBALc=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/exporters/otlp/internal/retry v1.15.1/go.mod h1:uOTV75+LOzV+ODmL8ahRLWkFA3eQcSC2aAsbxIu4duk=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/exporters/otlp/otlptrace v1.15.1 h1:tyoeaUh8REKay72DVYsSEBYV18+fGONe+YYPaOxgLoE=
@@ -418,23 +426,31 @@ go.opentelemetry.io/otel/exporters/otlp/otlptrace/otlptracehttp v1.15.1 h1:pnJfH
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/exporters/otlp/otlptrace/otlptracehttp v1.15.1/go.mod h1:cC3Eu2V56zXY09YlijmqDhOUnL2jVL6KKJg4PGh++dU=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/metric v0.37.0 h1:pHDQuLQOZwYD+Km0eb657A25NaRzy0a+eLyKfDXedEs=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/metric v0.37.0/go.mod h1:DmdaHfGt54iV6UKxsV9slj2bBRJcKC1B1uvDLIioc1s=
+go.opentelemetry.io/otel/metric v1.16.0 h1:RbrpwVG1Hfv85LgnZ7+txXioPDoh6EdbZHo26Q3hqOo=
+go.opentelemetry.io/otel/metric v1.16.0/go.mod h1:QE47cpOmkwipPiefDwo2wDzwJrlfxxNYodqc4xnGCo4=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/sdk v1.7.0/go.mod h1:uTEOTwaqIVuTGiJN7ii13Ibp75wJmYUDe374q6cZwUU=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/sdk v1.15.1 h1:5FKR+skgpzvhPQHIEfcwMYjCBr14LWzs3uSqKiQzETI=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/sdk v1.15.1/go.mod h1:8rVtxQfrbmbHKfqzpQkT5EzZMcbMBwTzNAggbEAM0KA=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace v1.7.0/go.mod h1:fzLSB9nqR2eXzxPXb2JW9IKE+ScyXA48yyE4TNvoHqU=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace v1.15.1 h1:uXLo6iHJEzDfrNC0L0mNjItIp06SyaBQxu5t3xMlngY=
 go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace v1.15.1/go.mod h1:IWdQG/5N1x7f6YUlmdLeJvH9yxtuJAfc4VW5Agv9r/8=
+go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace v1.16.0 h1:8JRpaObFoW0pxuVPapkgH8UhHQj+bJW8jJsCZEu5MQs=
+go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace v1.16.0/go.mod h1:Yt9vYq1SdNz3xdjZZK7wcXv1qv2pwLkqr2QVwea0ef0=
 go.opentelemetry.io/proto/otlp v0.7.0/go.mod h1:PqfVotwruBrMGOCsRd/89rSnXhoiJIqeYNgFYFoEGnI=
 go.opentelemetry.io/proto/otlp v0.19.0 h1:IVN6GR+mhC4s5yfcTbmzHYODqvWAp3ZedA2SJPI1Nnw=
 go.opentelemetry.io/proto/otlp v0.19.0/go.mod h1:H7XAot3MsfNsj7EXtrA2q5xSNQ10UqI405h3+duxN4U=
 go.uber.org/atomic v1.7.0/go.mod h1:fEN4uk6kAWBTFdckzkM89CLk9XfWZrxpCo0nPH17wJc=
 go.uber.org/atomic v1.10.0 h1:9qC72Qh0+3MqyJbAn8YU5xVq1frD8bn3JtD2oXtafVQ=
 go.uber.org/atomic v1.10.0/go.mod h1:LUxbIzbOniOlMKjJjyPfpl4v+PKK2cNJn91OQbhoJI0=
+go.uber.org/atomic v1.11.0 h1:ZvwS0R+56ePWxUNi+Atn9dWONBPp/AUETXlHW0DxSjE=
+go.uber.org/atomic v1.11.0/go.mod h1:LUxbIzbOniOlMKjJjyPfpl4v+PKK2cNJn91OQbhoJI0=
 go.uber.org/goleak v1.1.10/go.mod h1:8a7PlsEVH3e/a/GLqe5IIrQx6GzcnRmZEufDUTk4A7A=
 go.uber.org/goleak v1.2.0 h1:xqgm/S+aQvhWFTtR0XK3Jvg7z8kGV8P4X14IzwN3Eqk=
 go.uber.org/multierr v1.6.0/go.mod h1:cdWPpRnG4AhwMwsgIHip0KRBQjJy5kYEpYjJxpXp9iU=
 go.uber.org/multierr v1.9.0 h1:7fIwc/ZtS0q++VgcfqFDxSBZVv/Xo49/SYnDFupUwlI=
 go.uber.org/multierr v1.9.0/go.mod h1:X2jQV1h+kxSjClGpnseKVIxpmcjrj7MNnI0bnlfKTVQ=
+go.uber.org/multierr v1.11.0 h1:blXXJkSxSSfBVBlC76pxqeO+LN3aDfLQo+309xJstO0=
+go.uber.org/multierr v1.11.0/go.mod h1:20+QtiLqy0Nd6FdQB9TLXag12DsQkrbs3htMFfDN80Y=
 go.uber.org/zap v1.19.0/go.mod h1:xg/QME4nWcxGxrpdeYfq7UvYrLh66cuVKdrbD1XF/NI=
 go.uber.org/zap v1.24.0 h1:FiJd5l1UOLj0wCgbSE0rwwXHzEdAZS6hiiSnxJN/D60=
 go.uber.org/zap v1.24.0/go.mod h1:2kMP+WWQ8aoFoedH3T2sq6iJ2yDWpHbP0f6MQbS9Gkg=
diff --git a/main.go b/main.go
index 746cc77..cd38582 100644
--- a/main.go
+++ b/main.go
@@ -27,16 +27,16 @@ import (
 
 	// Import all Kubernetes client auth plugins (e.g. Azure, GCP, OIDC, etc.)
 	// to ensure that exec-entrypoint and run can make use of them.
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime"
 	utilRuntime "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/util/runtime"
 	clientGoScheme "k8s.io/client-go/kubernetes/scheme"
 	_ "k8s.io/client-go/plugin/pkg/client/auth"
 	ctrl "sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime"
 	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/healthz"
-	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/log/zap"
 
 	"github.com/gin-gonic/gin"
-	"github.com/go-logr/logr"
+	"github.com/go-logr/zapr"
 
 	v1alpha1 "github.com/cedi/urlshortener/api/v1alpha1"
 	"github.com/cedi/urlshortener/controllers"
@@ -78,34 +78,37 @@ func main() {
 	var probeAddr string
 	var bindAddr string
 	var namespaced bool
+	var debug bool
 
 	flag.StringVar(&metricsAddr, "metrics-bind-address", ":9110", "The address the metric endpoint binds to.")
 	flag.StringVar(&probeAddr, "health-probe-bind-address", ":9081", "The address the probe endpoint binds to.")
 	flag.StringVar(&bindAddr, "bind-address", ":8443", "The address the service binds to.")
 	flag.BoolVar(&namespaced, "namespaced", true, "Restrict the urlshortener to only list resources in the current namespace")
+	flag.BoolVar(&debug, "debug", false, "Turn on debug logging")
 
-	opts := zap.Options{
-		Development: false, // false = production mode = JSON log format
-	}
-
-	opts.BindFlags(flag.CommandLine)
 	flag.Parse()
 
 	// Initialize Logging
-	ctrl.SetLogger(zap.New(zap.UseFlagOptions(&opts)))
-	setupLog := ctrl.Log.WithName("setup")
-	shutdownLog := ctrl.Log.WithName("shutdown")
+	zapLog, otelLogger, undo := observability.InitLogging(debug)
+	defer otelLogger.Sync()
+	defer undo()
+
+	ctrl.SetLogger(zapr.NewLogger(zapLog))
 
 	// Initialize Tracing (OpenTelemetry)
 	traceProvider, tracer, err := observability.InitTracer(serviceName, serviceVersion)
 	if err != nil {
-		setupLog.Error(err, "failed initializing tracing")
+		zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("failed initializing tracing",
+			zap.Error(err),
+		)
 		os.Exit(1)
 	}
 
 	defer func() {
 		if err := traceProvider.Shutdown(context.Background()); err != nil {
-			shutdownLog.Error(err, "Error shutting down tracer provider")
+			zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("Error shutting down tracer provider",
+				zap.Error(err),
+			)
 		}
 	}()
 
@@ -118,7 +121,9 @@ func main() {
 		namespaceByte, err := os.ReadFile("/var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/namespace")
 		if err != nil {
 			span.RecordError(err)
-			setupLog.Error(err, "Unable to read current namespace")
+			zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("Error shutting down tracer provider",
+				zap.Error(err),
+			)
 			os.Exit(1)
 		}
 		span.End()
@@ -140,7 +145,9 @@ func main() {
 
 	if err != nil {
 		span.RecordError(err)
-		setupLog.Error(err, "unable to start urlshortener")
+		zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("unable to start urlshortener",
+			zap.Error(err),
+		)
 		os.Exit(1)
 	}
 
@@ -159,13 +166,16 @@ func main() {
 	shortlinkReconciler := controllers.NewShortLinkReconciler(
 		sClient,
 		mgr.GetScheme(),
-		&ctrl.Log,
+		zapLog,
 		tracer,
 	)
 
 	if err = shortlinkReconciler.SetupWithManager(mgr); err != nil {
 		span.RecordError(err)
-		setupLog.Error(err, "unable to create controller", "controller", "ShortLink")
+		zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("unable to create controller",
+			zap.Error(err),
+			zap.String("controller", "ShortLink"),
+		)
 		os.Exit(1)
 	}
 
@@ -173,13 +183,16 @@ func main() {
 		mgr.GetClient(),
 		rClient,
 		mgr.GetScheme(),
-		&ctrl.Log,
+		zapLog,
 		tracer,
 	)
 
 	if err = redirectReconciler.SetupWithManager(mgr); err != nil {
 		span.RecordError(err)
-		setupLog.Error(err, "unable to create controller", "controller", "Redirect")
+		zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("unable to create controller",
+			zap.Error(err),
+			zap.String("controller", "Redirect"),
+		)
 		os.Exit(1)
 	}
 	//+kubebuilder:scaffold:builder
@@ -187,52 +200,61 @@ func main() {
 	span.End()
 
 	if err := mgr.AddHealthzCheck("healthz", healthz.Ping); err != nil {
-		setupLog.Error(err, "unable to set up health check")
+		zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("unable to set up health check",
+			zap.Error(err),
+		)
 		os.Exit(1)
 	}
 
 	if err := mgr.AddReadyzCheck("readyz", healthz.Ping); err != nil {
-		setupLog.Error(err, "unable to set up ready check")
+		zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("unable to set up ready check",
+			zap.Error(err),
+		)
 		os.Exit(1)
 	}
 
 	// run our urlshortener mgr in a separate go routine
 	go func() {
-		setupLog.Info("starting urlshortener")
+		zapLog.Info("starting urlshortener")
+
 		if err := mgr.Start(ctrl.SetupSignalHandler()); err != nil {
-			setupLog.Error(err, "problem running urlshortener")
+			zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("unable starting urlshortener",
+				zap.Error(err),
+			)
 			os.Exit(1)
 		}
 	}()
 
 	shortlinkController := apiController.NewShortlinkController(
-		&ctrl.Log,
+		zapLog,
 		tracer,
 		sClient,
 	)
 
 	// Init Gin Framework
 	gin.SetMode(gin.ReleaseMode)
-	r, srv := router.NewGinGonicHTTPServer(bindAddr, &setupLog, serviceName)
+	r, srv := router.NewGinGonicHTTPServer(bindAddr, zapLog, serviceName)
 
-	setupLog.Info("Load API routes")
+	zapLog.Info("Load API routes")
 	router.Load(r, shortlinkController)
 
 	// run our gin server mgr in a separate go routine
 	go func() {
 		if err := srv.ListenAndServe(); err != nil && errors.Is(err, http.ErrServerClosed) {
-			setupLog.Error(err, "listen\n")
+			zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("failed to listen and serve",
+				zap.Error(err),
+			)
 		}
 	}()
 
-	handleShutdown(srv, &shutdownLog)
+	handleShutdown(srv, zapLog)
 
-	shutdownLog.Info("Server exiting")
+	zapLog.Info("Server exiting")
 }
 
 // handleShutdown waits for interrupt signal and then tries to gracefully
 // shutdown the server with a timeout of 5 seconds.
-func handleShutdown(srv *http.Server, shutdownLog *logr.Logger) {
+func handleShutdown(srv *http.Server, zapLog *zap.Logger) {
 	quit := make(chan os.Signal, 1)
 
 	signal.Notify(
@@ -244,7 +266,7 @@ func handleShutdown(srv *http.Server, shutdownLog *logr.Logger) {
 
 	// wait (and block) until shutdown signal is received
 	<-quit
-	shutdownLog.Info("Shutting down server...")
+	zapLog.Info("Shutting down server...")
 
 	// The context is used to inform the server it has 5 seconds to finish
 	// the request it is currently handling
@@ -255,7 +277,9 @@ func handleShutdown(srv *http.Server, shutdownLog *logr.Logger) {
 	// then srv.Shutdown(ctx) will return an error, causing us to force
 	// the shutdown
 	if err := srv.Shutdown(ctx); err != nil {
-		shutdownLog.Error(err, "Server forced to shutdown")
+		zapLog.Sugar().Errorw("Server forced to shutdown",
+			zap.Error(err),
+		)
 		os.Exit(1)
 	}
 }
diff --git a/pkg/client/authenticated_shortlink_client.go b/pkg/client/authenticated_shortlink_client.go
index 1289aac..1b501dd 100644
--- a/pkg/client/authenticated_shortlink_client.go
+++ b/pkg/client/authenticated_shortlink_client.go
@@ -5,22 +5,22 @@ import (
 
 	"github.com/cedi/urlshortener/api/v1alpha1"
 	"github.com/cedi/urlshortener/pkg/model"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 
-	"github.com/go-logr/logr"
 	"github.com/pkg/errors"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/attribute"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
 )
 
 type ShortlinkClientAuth struct {
-	log    *logr.Logger
+	zapLog *zap.Logger
 	tracer trace.Tracer
 	client *ShortlinkClient
 }
 
-func NewAuthenticatedShortlinkClient(log *logr.Logger, tracer trace.Tracer, client *ShortlinkClient) *ShortlinkClientAuth {
+func NewAuthenticatedShortlinkClient(zapLog *zap.Logger, tracer trace.Tracer, client *ShortlinkClient) *ShortlinkClientAuth {
 	return &ShortlinkClientAuth{
-		log:    log,
+		zapLog: zapLog,
 		tracer: tracer,
 		client: client,
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/controller/handle_create_shortlink.go b/pkg/controller/handle_create_shortlink.go
index 3deeddf..625dd5b 100644
--- a/pkg/controller/handle_create_shortlink.go
+++ b/pkg/controller/handle_create_shortlink.go
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/gin-gonic/gin"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/attribute"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 	v1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
 )
 
@@ -55,6 +56,11 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleCreateShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 		attribute.String("referrer", ct.Request.Referer()),
 	)
 
+	log := s.zapLog.Sugar()
+	log.With(zap.String("shortlink", shortlinkName),
+		zap.String("operation", "create"),
+	)
+
 	bearerToken := ct.Request.Header.Get("Authorization")
 	bearerToken = strings.TrimPrefix(bearerToken, "Bearer")
 	bearerToken = strings.TrimPrefix(bearerToken, "token")
@@ -81,19 +87,19 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleCreateShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 
 	jsonData, err := io.ReadAll(ct.Request.Body)
 	if err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to read request-body")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to read request-body")
 		ginReturnError(ct, http.StatusInternalServerError, contentType, err.Error())
 		return
 	}
 
 	if err := json.Unmarshal([]byte(jsonData), &shortlink.Spec); err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to read spec-json")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to read spec-json")
 		ginReturnError(ct, http.StatusInternalServerError, contentType, err.Error())
 		return
 	}
 
 	if err := s.authenticatedClient.Create(ctx, githubUser.Login, &shortlink); err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to create ShortLink")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to create ShortLink")
 		ginReturnError(ct, http.StatusInternalServerError, contentType, err.Error())
 		return
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/controller/handle_delete_shortlink.go b/pkg/controller/handle_delete_shortlink.go
index 7285ec8..bdd48de 100644
--- a/pkg/controller/handle_delete_shortlink.go
+++ b/pkg/controller/handle_delete_shortlink.go
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/gin-gonic/gin"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/attribute"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 )
 
 // HandleDeleteShortLink handles the deletion of a shortlink
@@ -45,6 +46,11 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleDeleteShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 		attribute.String("referrer", ct.Request.Referer()),
 	)
 
+	log := s.zapLog.Sugar()
+	log.With(zap.String("shortlink", shortlinkName),
+		zap.String("operation", "delete"),
+	)
+
 	bearerToken := ct.Request.Header.Get("Authorization")
 	bearerToken = strings.TrimPrefix(bearerToken, "Bearer")
 	bearerToken = strings.TrimPrefix(bearerToken, "token")
@@ -64,7 +70,7 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleDeleteShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 
 	shortlink, err := s.authenticatedClient.Get(ctx, githubUser.Login, shortlinkName)
 	if err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to get ShortLink")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to get ShortLink")
 
 		statusCode := http.StatusInternalServerError
 
@@ -89,7 +95,7 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleDeleteShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 			statusCode = http.StatusNotFound
 		}
 
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to delete ShortLink")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to delete ShortLink")
 
 		ginReturnError(ct, statusCode, contentType, err.Error())
 		return
diff --git a/pkg/controller/handle_get_shortlink.go b/pkg/controller/handle_get_shortlink.go
index 141084d..8b7c556 100644
--- a/pkg/controller/handle_get_shortlink.go
+++ b/pkg/controller/handle_get_shortlink.go
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/gin-gonic/gin"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/attribute"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 )
 
 // HandleGetShortLink returns the shortlink
@@ -45,6 +46,11 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleGetShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 		attribute.String("referrer", ct.Request.Referer()),
 	)
 
+	log := s.zapLog.Sugar()
+	log.With(zap.String("shortlink", shortlinkName),
+		zap.String("operation", "create"),
+	)
+
 	bearerToken := ct.Request.Header.Get("Authorization")
 	bearerToken = strings.TrimPrefix(bearerToken, "Bearer")
 	bearerToken = strings.TrimPrefix(bearerToken, "token")
@@ -64,7 +70,7 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleGetShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 
 	shortlink, err := s.authenticatedClient.Get(ctx, githubUser.Login, shortlinkName)
 	if err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to get ShortLink")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to get ShortLink")
 
 		statusCode := http.StatusInternalServerError
 
diff --git a/pkg/controller/handle_list_shortlink.go b/pkg/controller/handle_list_shortlink.go
index af859cb..3cd3c41 100644
--- a/pkg/controller/handle_list_shortlink.go
+++ b/pkg/controller/handle_list_shortlink.go
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/gin-gonic/gin"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/attribute"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 )
 
 // HandleListShortLink handles the listing of
@@ -43,6 +44,9 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleListShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 		attribute.String("referrer", ct.Request.Referer()),
 	)
 
+	log := s.zapLog.Sugar()
+	log.With(zap.String("operation", "list"))
+
 	bearerToken := ct.Request.Header.Get("Authorization")
 	bearerToken = strings.TrimPrefix(bearerToken, "Bearer")
 	bearerToken = strings.TrimPrefix(bearerToken, "token")
@@ -62,7 +66,7 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleListShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 
 	shortlinkList, err := s.authenticatedClient.List(ctx, githubUser.Login)
 	if err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to list ShortLink")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to list ShortLink")
 
 		statusCode := http.StatusInternalServerError
 
diff --git a/pkg/controller/handle_shortlink.go b/pkg/controller/handle_shortlink.go
index c2ab5f4..3288309 100644
--- a/pkg/controller/handle_shortlink.go
+++ b/pkg/controller/handle_shortlink.go
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/gin-gonic/gin"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/attribute"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 )
 
 // HandleShortlink handles the shortlink and redirects according to the configuration
@@ -48,17 +49,22 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 		attribute.String("referrer", ct.Request.Referer()),
 	)
 
+	log := s.zapLog.Sugar()
+	log.With(zap.String("shortlink", shortlinkName),
+		zap.String("operation", "shortlink"),
+	)
+
 	ct.Header("Cache-Control", "public, max-age=900, stale-if-error=3600") // max-age = 15min; stale-if-error = 1h
 
 	shortlink, err := s.client.Get(ctx, shortlinkName)
 	if err != nil {
 		if strings.Contains(err.Error(), "not found") {
-			observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Path not found")
+			observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Path not found")
 			span.SetAttributes(attribute.String("path", ct.Request.URL.Path))
 
 			ct.HTML(http.StatusNotFound, "404.html", gin.H{})
 		} else {
-			observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to get ShortLink")
+			observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to get ShortLink")
 			ct.HTML(http.StatusInternalServerError, "500.html", gin.H{})
 		}
 		return
diff --git a/pkg/controller/handle_update_shortlink.go b/pkg/controller/handle_update_shortlink.go
index 3b91d12..adf366a 100644
--- a/pkg/controller/handle_update_shortlink.go
+++ b/pkg/controller/handle_update_shortlink.go
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/gin-gonic/gin"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/attribute"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 )
 
 // HandleDeleteShortLink handles the update of a shortlink
@@ -49,6 +50,11 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleUpdateShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 		attribute.String("referrer", ct.Request.Referer()),
 	)
 
+	log := s.zapLog.Sugar()
+	log.With(zap.String("shortlink", shortlinkName),
+		zap.String("operation", "update"),
+	)
+
 	bearerToken := ct.Request.Header.Get("Authorization")
 	bearerToken = strings.TrimPrefix(bearerToken, "Bearer")
 	bearerToken = strings.TrimPrefix(bearerToken, "token")
@@ -68,7 +74,7 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleUpdateShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 
 	shortlink, err := s.authenticatedClient.Get(ctx, githubUser.Login, shortlinkName)
 	if err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to get ShortLink")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to get ShortLink")
 
 		statusCode := http.StatusInternalServerError
 
@@ -90,14 +96,14 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleUpdateShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 
 	jsonData, err := io.ReadAll(ct.Request.Body)
 	if err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to read request-body")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to read request-body")
 
 		ginReturnError(ct, http.StatusInternalServerError, contentType, err.Error())
 		return
 	}
 
 	if err := json.Unmarshal([]byte(jsonData), &shortlinkSpec); err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to read ShortLink Spec JSON")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to read ShortLink Spec JSON")
 
 		ginReturnError(ct, http.StatusInternalServerError, contentType, err.Error())
 		return
@@ -106,7 +112,7 @@ func (s *ShortlinkController) HandleUpdateShortLink(ct *gin.Context) {
 	shortlink.Spec = shortlinkSpec
 
 	if err := s.authenticatedClient.Update(ctx, githubUser.Login, shortlink); err != nil {
-		observability.RecordError(span, s.log, err, "Failed to update ShortLink")
+		observability.RecordError(span, log, err, "Failed to update ShortLink")
 
 		ginReturnError(ct, http.StatusInternalServerError, contentType, err.Error())
 		return
diff --git a/pkg/controller/shortlink-controller.go b/pkg/controller/shortlink-controller.go
index f54133c..13aabc7 100644
--- a/pkg/controller/shortlink-controller.go
+++ b/pkg/controller/shortlink-controller.go
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ package controller
 
 import (
 	shortlinkClient "github.com/cedi/urlshortener/pkg/client"
-	"github.com/go-logr/logr"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
 )
@@ -11,17 +11,17 @@ import (
 type ShortlinkController struct {
 	client              *shortlinkClient.ShortlinkClient
 	authenticatedClient *shortlinkClient.ShortlinkClientAuth
-	log                 *logr.Logger
+	zapLog              *zap.Logger
 	tracer              trace.Tracer
 }
 
 // NewShortlinkController creates a new ShortlinkController
-func NewShortlinkController(log *logr.Logger, tracer trace.Tracer, client *shortlinkClient.ShortlinkClient) *ShortlinkController {
+func NewShortlinkController(zapLog *zap.Logger, tracer trace.Tracer, client *shortlinkClient.ShortlinkClient) *ShortlinkController {
 	controller := &ShortlinkController{
-		log:                 log,
+		zapLog:              zapLog,
 		tracer:              tracer,
 		client:              client,
-		authenticatedClient: shortlinkClient.NewAuthenticatedShortlinkClient(log, tracer, client),
+		authenticatedClient: shortlinkClient.NewAuthenticatedShortlinkClient(zapLog, tracer, client),
 	}
 
 	return controller
diff --git a/pkg/observability/helpers.go b/pkg/observability/helpers.go
index cfe49fb..8564ef1 100644
--- a/pkg/observability/helpers.go
+++ b/pkg/observability/helpers.go
@@ -3,23 +3,23 @@ package observability
 import (
 	"fmt"
 
-	"github.com/go-logr/logr"
 	"github.com/pkg/errors"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 )
 
-func RecordError(span trace.Span, log *logr.Logger, err error, msg string, args ...any) error {
+func RecordError(span trace.Span, zapLog *zap.SugaredLogger, err error, msg string, args ...any) error {
 	message := fmt.Sprintf(msg, args...)
 	span.AddEvent(message)
 
-	log.WithValues("traceID", span.SpanContext().TraceID()).Error(err, message)
+	zapLog.Errorw(msg, zap.Error(err))
 
 	err = errors.Wrap(err, message)
 	span.RecordError(err)
 	return err
 }
 
-func RecordInfo(span trace.Span, log *logr.Logger, msg string, args ...any) {
-	log.WithValues("traceID", span.SpanContext().TraceID()).Info(fmt.Sprintf(msg, args...))
+func RecordInfo(span trace.Span, zapLog *zap.SugaredLogger, msg string, args ...any) {
+	zapLog.Infof(msg, args...)
 	span.AddEvent(fmt.Sprintf(msg, args...))
 }
diff --git a/pkg/observability/opentelemetry.go b/pkg/observability/opentelemetry.go
index 86e83c8..808b2f6 100644
--- a/pkg/observability/opentelemetry.go
+++ b/pkg/observability/opentelemetry.go
@@ -2,11 +2,13 @@ package observability
 
 import (
 	"context"
+	"fmt"
 	"os"
 	"strings"
 
 	"github.com/MrAlias/flow"
 	"github.com/pkg/errors"
+	"github.com/uptrace/opentelemetry-go-extra/otelzap"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/exporters/otlp/otlptrace"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/exporters/otlp/otlptrace/otlptracehttp"
@@ -15,10 +17,10 @@ import (
 	sdkTrace "go.opentelemetry.io/otel/sdk/trace"
 	semconv "go.opentelemetry.io/otel/semconv/v1.4.0"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/otel/trace"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 )
 
 func InitTracer(serviceName, serviceVersion string) (*sdkTrace.TracerProvider, trace.Tracer, error) {
-
 	otlpEndpoint, ok := os.LookupEnv("OTLP_ENDPOINT")
 	otlpInsecure := os.Getenv("OTLP_INSECURE")
 
@@ -80,3 +82,28 @@ func InitTracer(serviceName, serviceVersion string) (*sdkTrace.TracerProvider, t
 
 	return traceProvider, trace, nil
 }
+
+func InitLogging(debug bool) (*zap.Logger, *otelzap.Logger, func()) {
+	var zapLog *zap.Logger
+	var err error
+
+	if debug {
+		zapLog, err = zap.NewDevelopment()
+	} else {
+		zapLog, err = zap.NewProduction()
+	}
+
+	if err != nil {
+		panic(fmt.Sprintf("Failed to initialize logger (%v)", err))
+	}
+
+	otelZap := otelzap.New(zapLog,
+		otelzap.WithTraceIDField(true),
+		otelzap.WithCaller(true),
+		otelzap.WithErrorStatusLevel(zap.ErrorLevel),
+	)
+
+	undo := otelzap.ReplaceGlobals(otelZap)
+
+	return zapLog, otelZap, undo
+}
diff --git a/pkg/router/router.go b/pkg/router/router.go
index 4482315..5108901 100644
--- a/pkg/router/router.go
+++ b/pkg/router/router.go
@@ -1,16 +1,15 @@
 package router
 
 import (
-	"fmt"
 	"net/http"
 
 	docs "github.com/cedi/urlshortener/docs"
 	urlShortenerController "github.com/cedi/urlshortener/pkg/controller"
+	"go.uber.org/zap"
 
 	"github.com/gin-gonic/contrib/secure"
 	"github.com/gin-gonic/gin"
 
-	"github.com/go-logr/logr"
 	"go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/github.com/gin-gonic/gin/otelgin"
 
 	swaggerFiles "github.com/swaggo/files"
@@ -33,7 +32,7 @@ import (
 // @in header
 // @name Authorization
 
-func NewGinGonicHTTPServer(bindAddr string, setupLog *logr.Logger, serviceName string) (*gin.Engine, *http.Server) {
+func NewGinGonicHTTPServer(bindAddr string, zapLog *zap.Logger, serviceName string) (*gin.Engine, *http.Server) {
 	router := gin.New()
 	router.Use(
 		otelgin.Middleware(serviceName),
@@ -55,7 +54,10 @@ func NewGinGonicHTTPServer(bindAddr string, setupLog *logr.Logger, serviceName s
 	//static path
 	router.Static("assets", "./html/assets")
 
-	setupLog.Info(fmt.Sprintf("Starting gin-tonic router on binAddr: '%s'", bindAddr))
+	zapLog.Sugar().Infow("Starting gin-tonic router",
+		zap.String("bindAddr", bindAddr),
+	)
+
 	srv := &http.Server{
 		Addr:    bindAddr,
 		Handler: router,