Calculate HFOV, VFOV, and DFOV quickly and accurately using our interactive FOV calculator. Explore real-time distortion visualization and access a built-in database of Commonlands lenses, featuring Sony, OmniVision, and OnSemi sensor presets. This tool also works as a Field of view calculator microscope, helping you understand and evaluate different fields of view with ease.

How to Use This Calculator

1. Select a sensor: Choose a preset from Sony, OmniVision, or OnSemi, or enter your own sensor dimensions. You can also check our CMOS sensor size reference for detailed format specifications.
2. Select a lens: Choose a Commonlands M12 lens or C-mount lens to automatically load its focal length and distortion data into the FOV calculator.
3. View distortion: Use the visualizer to see how the selected lens affects a reference grid and understand its distortion characteristics.
4. Read results: Instantly calculate HFOV, VFOV, DFOV, and scene coverage to better understand the viewing area. This Field of view calculator microscope also helps you evaluate the field of view based on your selected sensor and lens.

How to Calculate the Angle of View of a Camera

To calculate the angle of view, you need two important parameters from your camera setup. One is usually easy to find, while the other may require a little more research:

• The focal length of the lens you are using; and
• The dimensions of your camera’s sensor.

🙋 To check your sensor size, simply search Google for “[your camera model] sensor size.” You should be able to find the correct dimensions quickly.

The formula for calculating the angle of view in degrees is:$$aovi=2arctan⁡(sensors sizei2×focal length)$$

Why the small i, you may wonder? That’s because the same formula applies to all three possible directions across the sensor: horizontal, vertical, and diagonal.

As a general rule, the higher the magnification of a lens, the smaller its angle of view becomes. For example, if you can fit the Moon completely into a photograph, the vertical angle of view would be roughly half a degree. Achieving this, however, requires a fairly high magnification. In comparison, a 55 mm lens on an SLR (single-lens reflex) camera produces a horizontal angle of view of around 20°.

Now think about the Moon again. You managed to fit it inside your photograph or, more precisely, across your sensor. We are talking about a body roughly 3,500 km in size. With the right timing and a bit of luck, you could even photograph a plane passing between you and our satellite. A B747 flying at an altitude of 6.5 km could appear to almost eclipse the Moon, fitting into the same frame. So, is the jumbo jet really that large, or does this show that field of view can also be a relative concept?

The same principle of measuring visible space is also useful in other applications, including astronomy. For example, a Field of view calculator telescope can help determine how much of the sky a telescope can capture at a given setup.

The Angle of View

When we describe the dimensions of a picture using angles, we refer to the angle of view. This concept is relatively easy to visualize. Imagine your camera positioned at the center of a sphere. By connecting the boundaries of the scene being captured to the camera’s center, we can identify three different angles:

• A horizontal angle;
• A vertical angle; and
• A diagonal angle.

The first two angles determine the width and height of the rectangle that corresponds to the camera’s sensor. It’s important to understand that these measurements are absolute. You can imagine placing the sphere at any distance, even infinitely far away, and the angle of view will remain unchanged.

What Is a Camera Field of View?

📷 Cameras help us capture special moments and preserve memories of the world around us. However, their electronic eyes have certain limitations when it comes to how much of a scene they can capture. That’s why it’s helpful to consider what you want to include in your photos beforehand. Understanding your camera’s field of view can make it easier to frame your shots and capture the desired area.

The concept of field of view is not limited to photography. Astronomers also use it in their observations. 🔭 Explore our telescope field of view calculator to learn how field of view applies to telescopes as well.

The basic idea behind field of view is that a camera can capture only a specific portion of the real world at any given time. The size of this area depends on the camera’s configuration, especially the type of lens and the camera body used by the photographer.

Imagine drawing a rectangle in front of you. How would you describe its size to someone else? There are two ways to explain it:

• Using angles to express its dimensions in absolute terms.
• Using a pair of length measurements. Instead of simply saying “1 meter,” you would need to specify “1 meter at a distance of 4 meters.” This is known as a relative measurement.

These two approaches are often used almost interchangeably because they describe the same underlying concept. However, their definitions are different. Let’s explore each one in more detail.

The basic idea behind field of view is that a camera can capture only a specific portion of the real world at any given time. The size of this area depends on the camera’s configuration, especially the type of lens and the camera body used by the photographer.

Imagine drawing a rectangle in front of you. How would you describe its size to someone else? There are two ways to explain it:

• Using angles to express its dimensions in absolute terms.
• Using a pair of length measurements. Instead of simply saying “1 meter,” you would need to specify “1 meter at a distance of 4 meters.” This is known as a relative measurement.

These two approaches are often used almost interchangeably because they describe the same underlying concept. However, their definitions are different. Let’s explore each one in more detail.

The Field of View

Although angles are relatively easy to visualize, they can sometimes be difficult to estimate in practical terms. For example, it is not always easy to imagine exactly how wide 5° looks. This is where the field of view becomes useful, as it complements the idea of the angle of view.

Imagine the diverging lines extending from the center of the sphere toward the corners of the scene. Now stop those lines at a specific distance, d, and draw the corresponding rectangle. The resulting width and height are the measurements we refer to as the field of view at distance d.

This also explains why the field of view is not an absolute value. It changes depending on the distance between the camera and the subject. With the same angle of view, for example, you can fit both the Moon and a passenger airplane within the frame when they are at different distances.

The same principle is useful in specialized applications as well. A Field of view calculator CCTV can help determine the area a security camera can cover at a given distance, while a Field of View calculator iRacing is used to work out the appropriate viewing angle for a realistic racing setup.

How to Calculate the Camera Field of View

Just like the angle of view, the field of view can be described using three measurements: a horizontal length, a vertical length, and a diagonal length. To calculate the camera’s field of view fovi in any of these three directions, use the following formula:$$fovi=2tan⁡(aovi2)×d$$

You already know what the i represents, while d refers to the distance at which the field of view is being measured. When working through the calculation, make sure you use the appropriate dimension of your camera sensor. For example, to find the horizontal field of view, you should use the sensor’s horizontal length rather than its vertical dimension unless you are shooting a portrait picture.

A Field of view calculator focal length can also make this process easier by helping you understand how focal length, sensor size, and shooting distance affect the final field of view.

A Quick Summary: Angle of View vs. Field of View

A camera captures a rectangular portion of the real world and projects that scene onto its sensor. We have two main ways to describe the size of this captured area:

• The angle of view; and
• The field of view.

Both measurements can be described in three spatial directions, giving us the horizontal, vertical, and diagonal field of view of a camera setup, along with the corresponding angles of view.

The field of view depends on both the angle of view and the distance between the sensor and the object being captured. This is why the same camera and lens combination can cover very different physical areas depending on how far the subject is.

…and Some Examples!

There is no single typical field of view for every camera because it depends heavily on the lens attached to the camera. Still, a few practical examples can make the concept much easier to understand.

Canon produces a rectilinear 11-24 mm lens, designed for exceptionally wide-angle photography while maintaining sharp images. But exactly how wide is it? Let’s mount the lens on a Canon EOS 550D and use the setup to calculate its camera field of view.

A rectilinear lens is designed to preserve orthogonality. In other words, two straight lines that meet at a right angle in the real world are represented as straight, perpendicular lines in the image. A fisheye lens behaves differently because it introduces noticeable distortion, but this trade-off allows it to provide an extremely wide field of view.

The Canon EOS 550D has a sensor measuring 22.3 × 14.9 mm, allowing us to determine both the horizontal and vertical angle of view. To keep the example practical, let’s use the 24 mm focal length.

For the horizontal angle of view:$$aovh=2×arctan⁡(22.3 mm2×24 mm)=0.87 rad=50°$$

For the vertical direction:$$aovv=2×arctan⁡(14.9 mm2×24 mm)=0.60 rad=34°$$

This gives us an extremely wide angle of view, covering around 1700 square degrees. Even so, capturing a complete 360° image would still require almost 20 such fields of view.

What can you actually capture with this lens? At a distance of d = 200 m, the angular measurements can be converted into the corresponding linear fields of view:$$fovh=2tan⁡(50°2)×200=186 m$$$$fovv=2tan⁡(34°2)×200=122 m$$

That is a very large coverage area more than enough to fit the entire Colosseum in Rome into a single photograph. And you could do it while standing only slightly farther away than the diameter of the arena itself.

Now let’s look at a typical telephoto setup. We will keep the same Canon camera but replace the wide-angle lens with a 200 mm lens. Enter the values into the appropriate fields of our camera field of view calculator to determine the resulting angles of view.

For the vertical angle of view:$$aovv=2×arctan⁡(14.9 mm2×200 mm)=0.11 rad=6.4°$$

And for the horizontal direction:$$aovv=2×arctan⁡(14.9 mm2×200 mm)=0.074 rad=4.3°$$

The solid angle covered by this setup is only about 27 square degrees for the vertical measurement. Capturing a full 360° scene would therefore require more than 1500 individual shots. However, at a distance of 200 m, the lens could still capture an area measuring approximately 45 m × 30 m plenty of coverage for exciting wildlife photography without getting too close to the subject.

🙋 You can use our camera field of view calculator to determine the relevant angles and fields of view. It can also help you find the focal length required to achieve a particular field of view. The variables related to the sensor size are fixed because, in most camera setups, you are far more likely to change the lens than the sensor itself.

Does the Sensor Size of a DSLR Matter?

The sensor size of your camera has a noticeable effect on the quality and composition of your photographs. A camera with a larger sensor can provide a wider field of view with the same lens while keeping the same magnification. This means your subject will appear with more of the surrounding background in the frame.

However, the advantage is relative. When the photograph is printed in the same format, having a wider field of view will naturally result in a lower overall magnification of the subject.

FAQs

Conclusion

Understanding angle of view and field of view makes it easier to choose the right lens, sensor, and shooting distance for your setup. With a reliable FOV calculator, you can quickly estimate coverage, compare different camera configurations, and achieve the field of view you need with greater accuracy.

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