Apps & Tools

Lens Field of View Simulator

Name: Lens FOV Calculator
Author: Infinite Creation

Calculate horizontal, vertical, and diagonal FOV, with a live top-down view diagram.

Lens Settings

Focal Length

50mm

Sensor Size

Scene Distance (metres)

FOV Diagram, Top-Down View

Results

Crop Factor—

Full-Frame Equivalent—

Horizontal FOV—

Vertical FOV—

Diagonal FOV—

Frame Width at Scene Distance—

Frame Height at Scene Distance—

Lens Character—

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Knowledge Base

How to Use the Lens FOV Simulator

The Lens Field of View Simulator shows how different focal lengths appear on different camera sensors (full-frame, APS-C, etc.). Input focal length and sensor size to see the field of view in degrees. Critical for pre-production planning and understanding lens equivalence across cameras.

Understanding Focal Length & FOV

Focal length (measured in millimeters) determines how much of the scene you see. 24mm is ultra-wide. 200mm is zoomed in. The same focal length appears different on different sensor sizes.

Sensor Size Matters

Full-Frame (35mm): Standard reference. 50mm is "normal" (human eye FOV).
APS-C (crop sensor): 1.5x crop factor. 35mm on APS-C looks like 52mm on full-frame.
Micro 4/3: 2x crop factor. 25mm on MFT looks like 50mm on full-frame.
Phone: Tiny sensor. Wide angle lenses (24mm equivalent) look even wider.

Choosing Lenses

Wide angle (24-35mm): Landscapes, establishing shots, environmental storytelling. Creates distance and drama.
Normal (50mm): Close-ups, interviews, matches human perspective.
Telephoto (70-200mm): Compression effect, background blur, isolates subjects. Doesn't flatten faces like wide angles do.

FAQ

Q: Is a full-frame camera better than APS-C?
A: Not necessarily. APS-C cameras are smaller, cheaper, and more portable. The 1.5x crop can be an advantage for telephoto work.

Q: What focal length looks most cinematic?
A: 35mm and 50mm are considered cinematic. Avoid extreme wide angles (which distort) and extreme zooms (which feel surveillance-like).

Worked examples: field of view by sensor and focal length

How much of a scene each lens actually sees, on four sensor sizes. Field of view depends on the sensor as much as the lens, which is why the same 50mm looks normal on full frame and noticeably tight on Micro Four Thirds.

Sensor	Lens	Full frame equivalent	Horizontal view	Vertical view
Full frame	16mm	16mm	96.7°	73.7°
Full frame	24mm	24mm	73.7°	53.1°
Full frame	35mm	35mm	54.4°	37.8°
Full frame	50mm	50mm	39.6°	27.0°
Full frame	85mm	85mm	23.9°	16.1°
Full frame	135mm	135mm	15.2°	10.2°
APS-C (Sony/Fuji)	16mm	24mm	72.6°	52.0°
APS-C (Sony/Fuji)	24mm	36mm	52.2°	36.0°
APS-C (Sony/Fuji)	35mm	53mm	37.1°	25.1°
APS-C (Sony/Fuji)	50mm	75mm	26.4°	17.7°
APS-C (Sony/Fuji)	85mm	128mm	15.7°	10.5°
APS-C (Sony/Fuji)	135mm	203mm	9.9°	6.6°
Micro Four Thirds	16mm	32mm	56.8°	44.2°
Micro Four Thirds	24mm	48mm	39.6°	30.3°
Micro Four Thirds	35mm	70mm	27.8°	21.0°
Micro Four Thirds	50mm	100mm	19.6°	14.8°
Micro Four Thirds	85mm	170mm	11.6°	8.7°
Micro Four Thirds	135mm	270mm	7.3°	5.5°
1 inch	16mm	43mm	44.8°	30.8°
1 inch	24mm	65mm	30.8°	20.8°
1 inch	35mm	95mm	21.4°	14.3°
1 inch	50mm	135mm	15.0°	10.1°
1 inch	85mm	230mm	8.9°	5.9°
1 inch	135mm	365mm	5.6°	3.7°

The full frame equivalent column is the number to compare across cameras. The 24mm lens on Micro Four Thirds and the 50mm on full frame both see 39.6 degrees horizontally, so they frame the same shot from the same spot. They do not render depth of field the same way, which is a separate question from field of view.

Vocabulary

Field of view. How wide an angle the camera records, measured in degrees. A larger number means more of the scene fits in frame. Quoted horizontally, vertically or diagonally, so always check which one a specification means.

Focal length. The distance in millimetres from the lens's optical centre to the sensor when focused at infinity. Shorter lengths see wider, longer lengths see narrower and appear to compress distance between near and far objects.

Crop factor. How much smaller a sensor is than full frame, expressed as a multiplier. Multiply focal length by the crop factor to find the full frame lens that would frame the same shot. APS-C is around 1.5, Micro Four Thirds is 2.

Full frame equivalent. The focal length that would give the same field of view on a 36 by 24mm sensor. A translation between systems, useful because most lens intuition is described in full frame terms.