What your camera will see

General guide to what the camera will see

What your camera will see (angle of view), will depend on a combination of the camera format (typically 1/3" for mono cameras or 1/4" for colour cameras), plus the focal length of the lens.

Cameras with a varifocal (zoom) lens will encompass a range of focal lengths 

... the chart opposite shows the approximate horizontal angle of view for typical standard focal lengths, for each camera format.

Chart showing approximate 'Horizontal Angle of view' - based on Camera Format / Focal Length of the Lens:  

Lens Focal Length	1/3" format	1/4" format
2.6mm	99 degrees	75 degrees
3.6mm	78 degrees	60 degrees
3.8mm	70 degrees	55 degrees
6.0mm	43 degrees	33 degrees
8.0mm	35 degrees	26 degrees
12.0mm	23 degrees	17 degrees
varifocal example;
3.8 - 8.0mm	78 - 35 degrees	55 - 26 degrees

	print friendly version of chart - including distance guides