Canon FD lens mount

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The Canon FD lens mount is a physical standard for connecting a photographic lens to a single-lens reflex camera body. The standard was developed by Canon of Japan and was introduced in March 1971 with the Canon F-1 camera. It was the primary Canon SLR lens mounting system until 1987 when the cameras from the Canon EOS series were first produced. The last camera in the FD system was the Canon T60, from 1990. The FD mount replaced Canon's earlier FL mount; FD-mount cameras could use FL lenses in stop-down metering mode. There is no known meaning for 'FD', and Canon has never disclosed what, if anything, it stands for.

Although the Canon FD system enjoyed huge popularity in the 1970s and 1980s, the mount system is now obsolete, and Canon FD cameras and lenses are available for low prices on the second-hand market. This makes the system very attractive to 35mm film photographers who demand the highest optical quality,^{[1] [2]} but who do not need autofocus capability.

Contents 1 Background 2 Lens coatings 3 Aspherical or 'L' lenses 4 FD Autofocusing 5 Using FD lenses on other mounts 6 List of Canon-made FD-mount products 6.1 FD cameras 6.1.1 Fish-eye 6.1.2 Wide-angle 6.1.3 Normal 6.1.4 Telephoto 6.1.5 Zoom 6.2 FD lenses 6.2.1 Fisheye 6.2.2 Wide-angle 6.2.3 Normal 6.2.4 Telephoto 6.2.5 Zoom 7 Macrophoto lenses 8 References 9 See also 10 External links

[edit] Background

The FD lens mount is a breech lock mount. The advantage of this type of mount is that the contact surfaces between the body and lens do not rotate against each other when the lens is mounted. This prevents any abrasion, which could conceivably reduce the very precise lens-to-film distance. The disadvantages include slower lens changes; later FD ('New FD') lenses mounted more like bayonet-mount lenses in that the photographer twisted the lens body to mount and unmount, even though the actual mount surfaces stayed fixed.^[3] Canon chose a bayonet-style mount for its new EOS system's EF lenses.

Like its FL predecessor, the FD mount system allowed automatic aperture function, but in addition, a new indexing pin supported full-aperture metering. This enabled integral auto-exposure, beginning with the Canon EF in 1973, and later with the very popular Canon A-series cameras in 1976. The FD mount has no support for the lens-body communication, whether electrical or mechanical, required for autofocus (the AC FD lenses, described below, are an exception), which was a primary reason for its retirement; Canon could have adapted its mount to support auto-focus, as did other manufacturers, but instead the company chose a clean break with the past and an electrical only interface.

[edit] Lens coatings

The earliest breechlock Canon FD lenses (1971 - 1973) are recognizable by the polished metal surface on the front of the lens mount. In these 'chrome nose' lenses, Canon used two new proprietary lens coatings, designated "S.C" (Spectra Coating) and "S.S.C." (Super Spectra Coating). These were both multicoatings, but indicated two quality grades. In the chrome nose series, only the large-aperture 50mm f/1.4 and the 55mm f/1.2 (regular and 'AL'-type) lenses used S.S.C. coating.

The second series of breechlock FD lenses (1973 - 1979) lenses is inscribed "S.C." or "S.S.C." in red on the front of the lens mount. S.S.C. coating was extended to most lenses in this series. The basic S.C. coating was, for the most part, limited to the more inexpensive consumer lenses.

In 1978, with the introduction of the 'New FD' or 'FDn' series, the coating type was no longer specified on the lens front. All these lenses received S.S.C coating (with the exception of the 50mm f/1.8 lens).

[edit] Aspherical or 'L' lenses

A separate (and expensive) range of FD lenses was available for photographers who required the highest optical and mechanical performance. These used a variety of special technologies, including aspherical surfaces, fluorite optics, and low-dispersion glass. The earlier versions of these lenses are designated "AL", "Aspherical", or "Fluorite" on the front of the lens mount. The post-1979 'New FD' versions are designated "L" (said to indicate 'luxury' or 'asphericaL'). The "L" designation, and the famous red ring around the lens front, have continued in the current EOS autofocus lenses.

[edit] FD Autofocusing

FD lenses were nearly all manual-focus lenses. In the mid-1980s, Canon did, however, manufacture four unusual autofocus lenses for the FD mount standard.

The first, the FD 35-70mm f/4 AF, contained a lens-integral autofocus system and was the world's first autofocus zoom lens. The autofocus system was triggered by a button on the side of the lens, and involved no communication with the camera body. It was reasonably accurate with still subjects, but was too slow to be a practical solution for moving subjects such as sports.^[4]

Further development into autofocusing produced the AC derivative of the FD mount. Three AC lenses were manufactured, the AC 50mm f/1.8, AC 35-70mm f/3.5-4.5, and AC 75-200mm f/4.5. All were released in April 1985 alongside the Canon T80 camera, which was the only camera ever manufactured to take advantage of the AC lenses' AF capabilities. The lenses communicated with the T80 via electrical contacts and lacked an aperture ring, but were otherwise identical to the FD mount and could be used on those FD-mount cameras that could control the aperture, only without the AF capability. The AC lens-line proved to be a dead-end development, as Canon would abandon the capability in the two remaining FD-mount cameras it produced, the T90 and T60, and later introduce the EF lens mount.^[5]

[edit] Using FD lenses on other mounts

The flange focal distance of the FD mount is smaller than most other lens mounts, meaning that it is impossible to mount an FD lens onto most other cameras with an adapter and maintain the same focusing distance. Canon made an adapter containing corrective optics allowing its larger, more expensive FD telephoto lenses to be used on EOS bodies. This adapter functioned as a mild tele-converter, and could not be used on normal and wide-angle lenses. Canon produced this adapter to ease the initial cost of conversion for those with expensive collections of long FD telephoto lenses. Due to the limited number manufactured, these adapters remain sought-after, with used models selling for $1000 (the orignal "new" price was $250!). A few companies have started making EOS-FD adapters, however the image quality (especially at high aperture) is greatly reduced.^[6] Mechanically skilled photographers have, however, reported successfully retrofitting FD lenses with alternative mounts.^[7]

[edit] List of Canon-made FD-mount products

[edit] FD cameras

• Canon F-1 (1971)
• Canon FTb (1971)
• Canon FTbn (1973)
• Canon EF (1973)
• Canon TLb (1974)
• Canon TX (1975)
• Canon F-1n (1976)
• Canon AE-1 (1976)
• Canon AT-1 (1977)
• Canon A-1 (1978)
• Canon AV-1 (1979)
• Canon New F-1 (1981)
• Canon AE-1 Program (1981)
• Canon AL-1 (1982)
• Canon T50 (1983)
• Canon T70 (1984)
• Canon T80 (1985)
• Canon T90 (1986)
• Canon T60 (1990)

[edit] Fish-eye

• Fisheye 7.5mm f/5.6
• Fisheye 15mm f//2.8

[edit] Wide-angle

• 14mm f/2.8L
• 17mm f/4
• 20mm f/2.8
• 24mm f/1.4L
• 24mm f/2
• 24mm f/2.8
• 28mm f/2
• 28mm f/2.8
• 35mm f/2
• 35mm f/2.8
• TS 35mm f/2.8 (Tilt/Shift lens)

[edit] Normal

• 50mm f/1.2L
• 50mm f/1.2
• 50mm f/1.4
• 50mm f/1.8 S.C. coating only
• AC 50mm f/1.8
• Macro 50mm f/3.5

[edit] Telephoto

• 85mm f/1.2L
• 85mm f/1.8
• 85mm f/2.8 Soft Focus
• 100mm f/2
• 100mm f/2.8
• Macro 100mm f/4
• 135mm f/2
• 135mm f/2.8
• 135mm f/3.5
• 200mm f/1.8L
• 200mm f/2.8
• 200mm f/4
• Macro 200mm f/4
• 300mm f/2.8L
• 300mm f/4L
• 300mm f/4
• 300mm f/5.6
• 400mm f/2.8L
• 400mm f/4.5
• 500mm f/4.5L
• Reflex 500mm f/8
• 600mm f/4.5
• 800mm f/5.6L

[edit] Zoom

• 20-35mm f/3.5L
• 24-35mm f/3.5L
• 28-50mm f/3.5
• 28-55mm f/3.5-4.5
• 28-85mm f/4
• 35-70mm f/2.8-3.5
• 35-70mm f/3.5-4.5
• 35-70mm f/4
• 35-70mm f/4 AF
• AC 35-70mm f/3.5-4.5
• 35-105mm f/3.5-4.5
• 35-105mm f/3.5
• 50-135mm f/3.5
• 50-300mm f/4.5L
• 70-150mm f/4.5
• 70-210mm f/4
• 75-200mm f/4.5
• AC 75-200mm f/4.5
• 80-200mm f/4L
• 80-200mm f/4
• 85-300mm f/4.5
• 100-200mm f/5.6
• 100-300mm f/5.6L
• 100-300mm f/5.6
• 150-600mm f/5.6L

[edit] FD lenses

The original generation of FD lenses featured a silver locking ring at the base. Only that locking ring turns to lock the lens to the camera body; the lens body remains still.^[8]

[edit] Fisheye

• 7.5mm f/5.6
• 7.5mm f/5.6 S.S.C.
• 15mm f/2.8 S.S.C.

[edit] Wide-angle

• 17mm f/4
• 17mm f/4 S.S.C.
• 20mm f/2.8 S.S.C.
• 24mm f/1.4 S.S.C. Aspherical
• 24mm f/2.8
• 24mm f/2.8 S.S.C.
• 28mm f/2 S.S.C.
• 28mm f/2.8 S.C.
• 28mm f/3.5
• 28mm f/3.5 S.C.
• 35mm f/2 I
• 35mm f/2 II
• 35mm f/2 III
• 35mm f/2 S.S.C. I
• 35mm f/2 S.S.C. II
• TS 35mm f/2.8 S.S.C.
• 35mm f/3.5
• 35mm f/3.5 S.C. I
• 35mm f/3.5 S.C. II
• 35mm f/3.5 S.C. III

[edit] Normal

• 50mm f/1.4
• 50mm f/1.4 S.S.C. (I)
• 50mm f/1.4 S.S.C. (II)
• 50mm f/1.8 (I)
• 50mm f/1.8 (II)
• 50mm f/1.8 S.C. (I)
• 50mm f/1.8 S.C. (II)
• Macro 50mm f/3.5 S.S.C.
• 55mm f/1.2
• 55mm f/1.2 AL
• 55mm f/1.2 S.S.C.
• 55mm f/1.2 S.S.C. AL
• 55mm f/1.2 S.S.C. Aspherical

[edit] Telephoto

• 85mm f/1.2 S.S.C. Aspherical
• 85mm f/1.8 S.S.C.
• 100mm f/2.8
• 100mm f/2.8 S.S.C.
• Macro 100mm f/4 S.C.
• 135mm f/2.5
• 135mm f/2.5 S.C.
• 135mm f/3.5
• 135mm f/3.5 S.C. (I)
• 135mm f/3.5 S.C. (II)
• 200mm f/2.8 S.S.C.
• 200mm f/4
• 200mm f/4 S.S.C.
• 300mm f/2.8 S.S.C. Fluorite
• 300mm f/4 S.S.C.
• 300mm f/4L
• 300mm f/5.6
• 300mm f/5.6 S.C.
• 300mm f/5.6 S.S.C.
• 400mm f/4.5 S.S.C.
• 500mm f/4.5L
• Reflex 500mm f/8 S.S.C.
• 600mm f/4.5 S.S.C.
• 800mm f/5.6 S.S.C.
• 800mm f/5.6L

[edit] Zoom

• 24-35mm f/3.5 S.S.C. Aspherical
• 28-50mm f/3.5 S.S.C.
• 35-70mm f/2.8-3.5 S.S.C.
• 80-200mm f/4 S.S.C.
• 85-300mm f/4.5 S.S.C
• 100-200mm f/5.6
• 100-200mm f/5.6 S.S.C.

[edit] Macrophoto lenses

These lenses could only be used attached to a macro bellows; since they can't mount to a camera directly, they are not properly FD lenses, but are listed here because they are part of the whole system.^[9]

• Macrophoto Lens 20mm f/2.8
• Macrophoto Lens 35mm f/2.8

[edit] References

1. ^ http://www.imx.nl/photo/optics_2/reflections_on_current_opti.html Puts, E: Reflections on current optical designs
2. ^ http://www.imx.nl/photo/canon/canon_fd_lens_reports_50_an.html Puts, E: Canon FD lens reports 50 and 55mm
3. ^ Canon Inc.. New FD Lenses. Canon Camera Museum.
4. ^ http://www.canon.com/camera-museum/camera/lens/nfd/data/nfd_35~70_4_af.html Canon Camera Museum: New FD 35-70mm AF lens
5. ^ http://www.canon.com/camera-museum/camera/lens/sp/m_ac.html Canon Camera Museum: AC lenses
6. ^ http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/reviews/canon_fd_eos_adapters.html Puts, E: Canon FD to EOS lens adapters
7. ^ http://www.ganymeta.org/~darren/photo_f1.2_conversion.php Puts, E: Canon 55mm f1.2 FD -> EOS Conversion
8. ^ Canon Inc.. FD lenses. Canon Camera Museum.
9. ^ Canon Inc.. Special Lenses. Canon Camera Museum.

[edit] See also

• List of Canon products

[edit] External links

• Canon FD Documentation Project - Manuals and much more.
• Extensive FD Reference Page at Photography in Malaysia.
• Canon FD FAQL.
• Canon FD Linklist, mount types and acronyms explained

Canon SLR cameras and lens mounts
Lens Mount	Series	Model
R		Flex (1959), R2000 (1960), RP (1961), RM (1962)
FL		FX (1964), FP (1964), Pellix (1965), FT QL (1966), Pellix QL (1966), TL (1968)
FD	F	Amateur: FTb (1971), FTbn (1973), EF (1973), TLb (1974), TX (1975)
		Professional: F-1(1971), F-1n (1976), New F-1 (1981)
	A	AE-1 (1976), AT-1 (1976), A-1 (1978), AV-1 (1979), AE-1 Program (1981), AL-1 (1982)
	T	T50 (1983), T70 (1984), T80 (1985), T90 (1986), T60 (1990)
EF / EF-S
	1	EOS-1 (1989), EOS-1N (1994), EOS-1N RS (1995), EOS-1v (2001)
		EOS 650 (1987), EOS 620 (1987), EOS 750QD (1988), EOS 850QD (1988), EOS 630QD (1989), EOS RT (1989), EOS 700QD (1989), EOS 10sQD (1990), EOS 1000F (1990), EOS 100 (1991), EOS EF-M (1991), EOS 5/5QD/A2/A2e (1992), EOS 1000FN (1992), EOS 500 (1993), EOS 888 (1993), EOS 50 (1995), EOS 500N (1996), EOS-3 (1998), EOS 88 (1999), EOS 300 (1999), EOS 30 (2000), EOS 3000N (2002), EOS 300V (2002), EOS 3000V (2003), EOS 30V (2004), EOS 300X (2004)
	IX	EOS IX, EOS IX Lite
		Canon DSLR cameras
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