Review of Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 (nFD, 1979)

For the provided Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 many thanks the store ProFotoSalewhere you can find many new and used lenses for different systems, including similar Canon lenses.

In short

Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 is a classic manual focus telephoto zoom lens designed for Canon film cameras. Not bad for his age.

It attracts with its constant relative aperture over the entire range of focal lengths, low cost, “double-ring” design of the focal length and focusing method, as well as an internal zoom lens.

There are three main Canon FD/FDn models of the 80-200/4 class:

1. Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 SSC, FD, October 1976, filter diameter 55 mm, optical design 15/11
2. Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4, FDn, June 1979, filter diameter 58 mm, optical design 15/11, (shown in this review)
3. Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 L, FDn, November 1985, filter diameter 58 mm, optical design 14/12 (fluorite + UD), Push-Pull design

In 1999, the line evolved to the 70-200/4 class, the first representative of which was the Canon Zoom Lens EF 70-200mm 1:4 L USM.

Main technical characteristics of Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4:

Name of instances from review	On the hood: Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 Canon Lens Made in Japan On body: 80-200mm 10536 From the bayonet side: T600
Basic properties	FD – Canon FD mount (in this case it is nFD, FDn, NEW FD) MF (MAnnual Pass Focus) - manual focus only Aperture ring, automatic iris control with cameras that support this function Dual-ring zoom/focus design Built-in hood
Front Filter Diameter	58 mm, metal thread for filters
Body materials	Most of the lens body is made of metal
Focal length	80-200 mm EGF for cameras Canon RF-S, Canon EF-M is 128-320 mm
Diagonal viewing angles	from 30° to 12° for a frame 36 X 24
Zoom ratio	2.5 x
Designed by	for Canon film cameras with FD/nFD mount
Number of aperture blades	8 rounded petals
Tags	Markings on the focus/zoom ring with focusing distance in meters (m, white) and feet (ft, green), available values ​​1, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.5, 1.7, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 7 , 10, 20 meters and infinity marker and 3.5, 4, 4.5, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, 15, 20, 30, 50 feet marks for working in the infrared spectrum, red broken lines for 80, 100, 135 and 200 mm Ring with aperture values, there are marks for F/4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22, 32, you can set one intermediate value between each pair of numbers values ​​for focal lengths 80, 100, 135 and 200 mm two red dots for pairing the bayonet mount green mark “A” and a locking button for switching the aperture control ring to automatic aperture control mode green mark 80-200mm bayonet mount release button (for Canon FD lenses it is located on the lens itself)
Diaphragm	over the entire range of focal lengths from F/4 to F/32. The lens has an aperture control ring.
MDF (minimum focusing distance)	1 meters across the entire focal length range with a maximum magnification ratio of 1: 3.45 at 200mm
The weight	757 grams (measured)
Optical design	15 elements in 11 groups. I didn't find the drawing.
Lens hood	Metal hood, built-in, retractable, telescopic
Period	Since June 1979
Manufacturer country	MADE IN JAPAN (Lens made in Japan)
Price	New do not sell. In a variant B. at. 50-150 cu

Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 can be easily and simply mounted on any modern digital mirrorless camera Canon RF, or RF-S, or Ef-m. But for SLR cameras with a bayonet mount Canon EF or Ef-s installation is difficult.

Assembly, control, focus

Lens body made very high quality. The bayonet mount release button is located near the aperture control ring, closer to the bayonet mount.

The diameter of the filter is 58 mm. The focus and zoom rings are knurled, but they not rubberized.

The Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 has a built-in metal hood, retractable, telescopic type. In the active position it is fixed well and does not wobble. There is a velvet fabric covering on the inside of the hood.

While focusing and changing focal length, the rear element of the lens remains motionless.

Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 uses internal zoom – while changing the focal length, the outer part of the lens body remains motionless, the lens does not change its size. Changing the focal length occurs smoothly, without jerks or dips. The zoom ring has longitudinal microplay.

The aperture control ring rotates with clicks, you can set one additional value between each pair of numbers that are printed on the ring. The ring has a green “A” mark and a release button for switching the aperture control ring to automatic aperture control mode and back. In position “A” the aperture control ring is locked until the release button is pressed. To switch from manual aperture control mode to “A” mode, you should also press the lock release button.

The Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 focus ring rotates approx. 360 degrees (almost a full turn). The focusing ring has longitudinal microplay. During focusing, the front lens doesn't spin, but moves forward by about 2 centimeters. It’s quite funny that during focusing, the built-in hood rotates, but the front lens does not rotate; at first it may seem that the trunk of the lens rotates along with the hood, along with the front lens. The minimum focusing distance is only 1 meter, which gives a good maximum magnification ratio of 1:3.45.

It's important: The focus ring has slight dips/jerks in its range. The focus ring does not move spontaneously under its own weight.

On the body there is a focusing distance scale, a focal length scale and marks for working in the infrared spectrum.

Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 has a slight 'Focus Breathing' effect (changing the viewing angle while focusing). When focusing towards the MDF, the viewing angle decreases.

Focus shift (shift-focus) was not noticed during operation and testing. Also, when changing the focal length, focusing is lost. The lens does not have a hard stop (hard infinity mechanical stop), which allows you to accurately and quickly focus the lens to infinity under any external temperature conditions.

Sample Photos

Sample photos on Sony NEX-6 (16MP Sony Exmor APS-C HD CMOS sensor), specially for this review, prepared Natalia (Instagram). A simple adapter was used FOTGA Canon FD/FDn/FL -> SONY E/FE/NEX. All photos in this review are shown without processing, according to the principles ZEROJPEG.

Original JPEG images can be view / download from this link (60 files).

My experience

Canon Zoom Lens FD 80-200mm 1:4 is a classic representative of its time. It's always a pleasure to work with such high-quality lenses, made to last.

With similar telephoto lenses with relatively good aperture you can squeeze out a lot, for example, look more in 'anti-crisis review'similar lens KIRON 80-200mm f / 4.5 MACRO 1: 4 MC KINO PRECISION JAPAN.

How to use FL/FD/FDn mount lenses

To use a Canon FL, Canon FD, or Canon FDn mount lens on modern mirrorless cameras, you should use the appropriate adapter:

• Canon RF/RF-S: adapter FD/FDn/FL -> RF/EOS R
• Canon EF-M: adapter FD/FDn/FL -> EF-M/EOS M
• Sony NEX/ILCE/IMCE/FE/E: adapter FD/FDn/FL -> NEX/ILCE/FE/E
• Nikon Z: adapter FD/FDn/FL -> Z
• Panasonic L / Sigma L / Leica L/T/TL: adapter FD/FDn/FL -> L
• fujifilm x: adapter FD/FDn/FL -> X/FX
• Samsung NX: adapter FD/FDn/FL -> NX
• Micro 4/3 (Panasonic/Olympus): adapter FD/FDn/FL -> M4/3
• Nikon 1 : adapter FD/FDn/FL -> N1

The adapters are suitable for FL, FD and FDn mount lenses, these mounts are backwards compatible. But using lenses with a Canon FL / Canon FD / Canon FDn mount on SLR cameras is difficult due to the long working distance. In such cases, a corrective lens adapter must be used, which will degrade the image quality.

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Material prepared Arkady Shapoval.