Specifications#
- Brand
- Canon
- Model
- A-1
- Camera type
- Film SLR
- Released
- 1978
- Lens mount
- Canon FD
- Film format
- 35 mm film (135)
- Image area
- 48.0 × 41.0 mm (Medium format 53.4 × 40 mm)
- Crop factor
- 0.69×
- Weight
- 620 g (21.9 oz)
- Focus
- Manual
- Metering
- Center-weighted average metering
- Dimensions
- 92 x 141 x 48 mm
- Production
- 1978-1985
Specifications merged from Wikipedia and Wikidata. Spot an error? Tell us.
Sensor size compared#
Focal length equivalents & field of view#
Multiply any focal length by 0.69 to get the full-frame field of view. Angles are for a rectilinear lens focused at infinity.
| Lens on this camera | Full-frame equivalent | Horizontal | Vertical | Diagonal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 mm | 14 mm | 97.6° | 88.6° | 112.7° |
| 23 mm | 16 mm | 92.4° | 83.4° | 107.8° |
| 28 mm | 19 mm | 81.2° | 72.4° | 96.8° |
| 32 mm | 22 mm | 73.7° | 65.3° | 89.2° |
| 35 mm | 24 mm | 68.9° | 60.7° | 84.1° |
| 45 mm | 31 mm | 56.1° | 49.0° | 70.1° |
| 55 mm | 38 mm | 47.1° | 40.9° | 59.7° |
| 63 mm | 43 mm | 41.7° | 36.0° | 53.2° |
| 80 mm | 55 mm | 33.4° | 28.7° | 43.1° |
| 90 mm | 62 mm | 29.9° | 25.7° | 38.7° |
| 110 mm | 75 mm | 24.6° | 21.1° | 32.0° |
| 120 mm | 82 mm | 22.6° | 19.4° | 29.5° |
| 150 mm | 103 mm | 18.2° | 15.6° | 23.8° |
| 180 mm | 123 mm | 15.2° | 13.0° | 19.9° |
| 250 mm | 171 mm | 11.0° | 9.4° | 14.4° |
| 350 mm | 240 mm | 7.8° | 6.7° | 10.3° |
Depth of field table#
Total depth of field at each subject distance, using a circle of confusion of 43.8 µm (the 0.030 mm full-frame standard scaled by the crop factor).
| Focal | Aperture | 50.0 cm | 1.00 m | 2.00 m | 3.00 m | 5.00 m | 10.0 m | Hyperfocal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32 mm | f/1.8 | 3.6 cm | 15.0 cm | 62.0 cm | 1.45 m | 4.48 m | 37.2 m | 13.0 m |
| 32 mm | f/2.8 | 5.6 cm | 23.5 cm | 99.8 cm | 2.44 m | 9.20 m | ∞ | 8.39 m |
| 32 mm | f/4 | 8.1 cm | 34.0 cm | 1.52 m | 4.10 m | 30.5 m | ∞ | 5.88 m |
| 32 mm | f/8 | 16.4 cm | 74.3 cm | 4.92 m | ∞ | ∞ | ∞ | 2.96 m |
| 63 mm | f/1.8 | 0.9 cm | 3.7 cm | 15.4 cm | 35.1 cm | 99.0 cm | 4.10 m | 50.4 m |
| 63 mm | f/2.8 | 1.3 cm | 5.8 cm | 24.0 cm | 54.9 cm | 1.56 m | 6.77 m | 32.4 m |
| 63 mm | f/4 | 1.9 cm | 8.3 cm | 34.4 cm | 79.1 cm | 2.29 m | 10.9 m | 22.7 m |
| 63 mm | f/8 | 3.9 cm | 16.6 cm | 70.4 cm | 1.67 m | 5.38 m | 75.8 m | 11.4 m |
| 107 mm | f/1.8 | 0.3 cm | 1.2 cm | 5.2 cm | 11.9 cm | 33.7 cm | 1.37 m | 145 m |
| 107 mm | f/2.8 | 0.4 cm | 1.9 cm | 8.1 cm | 18.6 cm | 52.5 cm | 2.14 m | 93.5 m |
| 107 mm | f/4 | 0.6 cm | 2.7 cm | 11.6 cm | 26.6 cm | 75.2 cm | 3.10 m | 65.5 m |
| 107 mm | f/8 | 1.2 cm | 5.5 cm | 23.2 cm | 53.5 cm | 1.53 m | 6.66 m | 32.8 m |
| 176 mm | f/1.8 | 0.1 cm | 0.4 cm | 1.9 cm | 4.3 cm | 12.3 cm | 50.0 cm | 393 m |
| 176 mm | f/2.8 | 0.1 cm | 0.7 cm | 2.9 cm | 6.7 cm | 19.1 cm | 77.9 cm | 253 m |
| 176 mm | f/4 | 0.2 cm | 0.9 cm | 4.1 cm | 9.6 cm | 27.3 cm | 1.11 m | 177 m |
| 176 mm | f/8 | 0.4 cm | 1.9 cm | 8.3 cm | 19.2 cm | 54.7 cm | 2.25 m | 88.6 m |
Equivalent aperture#
Exposure is identical at the same f-number on any format; equivalence only describes depth of field and total light.
Night-sky exposure limits#
Longest exposure before stars trail. The NPF rule accounts for pixel pitch and is stricter than the classic 500 rule — use it for pin-sharp stars on high-resolution sensors. (NPF needs a known resolution and is omitted here.)
| Focal length | 500 rule |
|---|---|
| 20 mm (14 mm eq.) | 36.5 s |
| 29 mm (20 mm eq.) | 25.2 s |
| 35 mm (24 mm eq.) | 20.8 s |
| 51 mm (35 mm eq.) | 14.3 s |
| 73 mm (50 mm eq.) | 10.0 s |
Handheld shutter speed guide#
The reciprocal rule uses the equivalent focal length. High-resolution sensors may need one stop faster than this for pixel-sharp results.
| Focal length | No stabilisation (1/equiv. focal) | With 3-stop IS | With 5-stop IBIS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35 mm | 1/25 s | 0.3 s | 1.3 s |
| 73 mm | 1/50 s | 1/6 s | 0.6 s |
| 146 mm | 1/100 s | 1/13 s | 0.3 s |
| 292 mm | 1/200 s | 1/25 s | 1/6 s |
Lenses for the Canon A-1#
Native Canon FD lenses in our database (12 total). Also adaptable: T-mount (T2), M42 screw mount, Deckel (DKL), Canon FL, Tamron Adaptall, M39 / LTM (Leica thread).
- Canon FDn 24mm 1:2.8 24 mm
- Canon FDn 28mm f/2.8 28 mm
- Canon FD 50mm f/1.4 S.S.C. 50 mm
- Canon FDn 50mm 1:1.4 50 mm
- Canon FDn 50mm 1:1.8 50 mm
- Canon FDn 100mm 1:2.8 100 mm
- Canon FDn 100mm f/2.8 100 mm
- Canon FDn 135mm 1:2.8 135 mm
- Sigma 180mm f/5.6 APO Macro 180 mm
- Canon FD 200mm f/2.8 S.S.C. 200 mm
- Canon FDn 200mm 1:4 200 mm
- Tokina 500mm f/8 RMC Mirror Lens 500 mm
Film stocks for the Canon A-1#
Films currently made in 135 format.
- ADOX CHS 100 II ISO 100
- ADOX CMS 20 II PRO ISO 20
- ADOX Color Mission 200 ISO 200
- ADOX Color Mission Helios ISO 3
- ADOX HR-50 ISO 50
- ADOX Scala 50 ISO 50
- Agfa Copex Rapid ISO 50
- AgfaPhoto APX 100 ISO 100
- AgfaPhoto APX 200 ISO 200
- AgfaPhoto APX 400 ISO 400
- AgfaPhoto Color 400 ISO 400
- Argenti ARF+ Reporter Film Plus ISO 400
- Argenti Nanotomic X ISO 32
- Argenti Pan-X ISO 100
- Argenti Scale-X ISO 100
- Bergger Pancro 400 ISO 400
- CatLABS X FILM 320 ISO 320
- CatLABS X FILM 320 Pro ISO 320
Similar cameras#
Other Medium format 53.4 × 40 mm film cameras from around the same time.
Frequently asked questions#
What is the crop factor of the Canon A-1?
The Canon A-1 has a crop factor of 0.69× relative to 35 mm full frame (diagonal 63.1 mm vs 43.3 mm).
What size is the Canon A-1 frame?
48.0 × 41.0 mm (Medium format 53.4 × 40 mm), an area of 1968 mm² — 228% of full frame.
What lens mount does the Canon A-1 use?
The Canon A-1 uses the Canon FD (flange distance 42.00 mm).
How long can I expose the night sky with the Canon A-1?
With a 29 mm lens (20 mm equivalent) the 500 rule gives 25 s.
Sources & licences#
- Wikipedia: Canon A-1 — CC BY-SA 4.0
- Wikidata Q62997 — CC0
Last updated October 03, 2026 · How we calculate · Sources