Old camera lenses

Sugarb6

Commendable
Oct 4, 2016
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Had a 1980 Canon A-1 camera with interchangeable lenses. Is there a digital Wi-Fi camera today that can use these lenses?
 
Solution
That camera uses the FD standard which was discontinued more than 2 decades ago. There are some compatibility problems but if you look at this excerpt you can see that it is possible on a number of modern cameras.

Using FD lenses on other mounts
The 42mm flange focal distance of the FD mount is shorter than that of most other lens mounts. Therefore, some lenses from other period cameras with longer flange focal distance can be mounted on Canon FD-mount cameras with appropriate adapters and still retain infinity focus. FD lenses can be adapted to other cameras with longer flange focal distances, though the lenses cannot focus to infinity unless the adapter contains an optical correction element which may compromise image quality, as it...

greens

Distinguished
Jan 27, 2012
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That camera uses the FD standard which was discontinued more than 2 decades ago. There are some compatibility problems but if you look at this excerpt you can see that it is possible on a number of modern cameras.

Using FD lenses on other mounts
The 42mm flange focal distance of the FD mount is shorter than that of most other lens mounts. Therefore, some lenses from other period cameras with longer flange focal distance can be mounted on Canon FD-mount cameras with appropriate adapters and still retain infinity focus. FD lenses can be adapted to other cameras with longer flange focal distances, though the lenses cannot focus to infinity unless the adapter contains an optical correction element which may compromise image quality, as it is not part of the original FD lens optical design.

Following the introduction of the EOS camera line, whose EF lens mount has a 44 mm flange focal distance, Canon briefly marketed an adapter which enabled certain FD telephoto lenses to be used on EOS bodies. The adapter contained high-quality corrective optics and functioned as a 1.26x tele-converter; it could not be used on lenses shorter than 200mm in focal length, nor any lens that interfered with its protruding optics. The adapter was produced in limited numbers, with the intent of easing the initial cost of conversion for professional users who owned expensive FD telephoto lenses. Originally priced at $250, these adapters are now scarce and highly valued, selling for around $1,000 on the second-hand market. Other inexpensive aftermarket FD to EOS adapters are available and can be used at the cost of severely reduced image quality, particularly at large apertures.[9]

Mechanically skilled photographers and technicians have successfully retrofitted FD lenses with alternative mounts, including the Arri PL mount and Canon EF mount.[10]

FD lenses can be mounted on Canon rangefinder cameras or other Leica screw mount cameras using the Canon Lens Mount Adapter B, but rangefinder-coupled focusing is lost.

FD lenses have been regularly used with the Micro Four Thirds system since its introduction in 2008. It has a flange focal distance of only 20mm and a 2× crop factor, halving the field of view compared to the original 24x36mm film frame.

As of 2012, with the introduction of the Canon EOS M mirrorless camera, almost all FD or FL lenses can be successfully adapted with infinity focus available without the need for a compensating lens, thus not compromising resolution, contrast and distortion performance. The EOS-M has an 18 megapixel APS-C sensor, offering image quality and resolution equivalent to other Canon EF-S APS-C sized sensors, retaining their 1.6× crop factor. The FD/FL lens must be manually focused and metering is done with aperture priority.[11]

FD lenses can also be mounted to current mirrorless digital cameras with short flange focal distance, using simple mechanical adapters without optical correction. FD lenses, especially wide and ultra-wide f/2.8, f/2 and f/1.4 variants, have proven popular options for videography for these mirrorless formats.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canon_FD_lens_mount#Using_FD_lenses_on_other_mounts
 
Solution