About field of view
Field of view (FOV) is the angle of the scene your lens actually captures, measured in degrees, and it depends on both the focal length and your sensor's physical size. This calculator uses the standard trigonometric formula (FOV = 2 x arctan(sensor dimension / (2 x focal length))) applied separately to your sensor's width, height, and diagonal. It's the same math behind our crop-factor calculator's field-of-view figures, on its own page for anyone who wants the angle of view directly — useful for planning shots where you need to know how wide a lens will frame a scene (surveying, videography, architectural photography) without needing the crop-factor/equivalent-focal-length context as well.
How the calculation works
Field of view is 2 × atan(sensor dimension ÷ (2 × focal length)). The same formula is applied to the sensor's width, height and diagonal to give horizontal, vertical and diagonal field of view.
Field of view depends on both focal length and sensor size: longer focal lengths narrow it, and larger sensors widen it. The table below the calculator shows the field of view at common focal lengths from 14 mm to 300 mm for the sensor you pick.
Worked examples
- On full frame, 24 mm gives about 73.7° horizontal, 53.1° vertical and 84.1° diagonal. 50 mm gives about 39.6° horizontal, 27.0° vertical and 46.8° diagonal.
- On full frame, 85 mm is about 28.6° diagonal, 200 mm about 12.3° and 14 mm about 114.2°. Diagonal is the figure most often quoted in lens descriptions.
- On APS-C (23.5×15.6 mm), 50 mm gives about 26.4° horizontal, 17.7° vertical and 31.5° diagonal, framing narrower than the same lens on full frame.
- A 25 mm lens on Micro Four Thirds (17.3×13 mm) gives about 46.8° diagonal, the same as 50 mm on full frame.
When to use it
It is useful for architecture and interior work, video and site documentation, anywhere you need to know how wide a scene will be framed as an angle. If you need the angle itself rather than crop factor or equivalent focal length, you can read it directly.
Limits and common mistakes
- Do not mix up vertical and horizontal field of view. Turning the camera vertical swaps the two, but the diagonal stays the same.
- The field of view quoted in lens marketing is usually diagonal. Comparing against a horizontal figure makes the numbers look different.
- The calculation uses only sensor size and focal length. It does not account for lens distortion or the slight narrowing some lenses show at close focus.
- For a specific camera, choose "Custom" under sensor size and enter the manufacturer's sensor width and height in millimeters.
- The focal length to enter is the real one. Entering an equivalent focal length makes the field of view look too narrow for the sensor.
Guides that pair well with this calculator
Calculated from the sensor's physical dimensions and focal length only — it doesn't account for lens distortion or the small field-of-view reduction some lenses show at their closest focus distance.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the difference between this and the crop-factor calculator?+
They use the same underlying formula, but this page is built around the field-of-view angle itself (useful when you need to know exactly how wide a shot will be), while the crop-factor calculator is built around comparing equivalent focal lengths and apertures across sensor sizes.
Why are there three FOV values — horizontal, vertical, and diagonal?+
Horizontal and vertical FOV describe how wide and how tall the frame is, using the sensor's width and height respectively. Diagonal FOV (using the sensor's diagonal measurement) is the single number most commonly quoted for a lens's overall angle of view, since it doesn't depend on whether the camera is held horizontally or vertically.
Can I use this for a specific camera model instead of a general sensor size?+
Yes — select "Custom" under Sensor Size and enter your camera's exact sensor width and height in millimeters, which you can usually find in its manufacturer specifications.