Canon AE1

Review Date
June 14, 2008

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Reviewed by
Dick Spence , Intermediate

Price Paid
$350.00

Photography Experience
21+ years , Outdoor

Summary
Originally purchased the camera in 1979 so my daughter and I could spend some quality time together. We would take the photographs and develop/enlarge them in our darkroom. The camera is indestructable. I used a 1.2 basic lens (rather than the standard 1.4) which allowed a little more opportunity for dawn and dusk shots. I then added a fixed 135 mm that went to F64, which REALLY provided unbelievable depth of field. Then a 28 mm wide angle, Speedlite flash, and finally a 200 mm telephoto (now that was heavy!). I then added the full set of Cokin filters for some splendid shots of the Grand Canyon. I learned that kids, when given the chance, can be very creative. It was great fun and I hope to do some more with my grandkids.

Strengths
sturdy
easy to use and master
bright TTL images and meters
easy to mount on tripods
fast (especially with 1.2 lens)

Weaknesses
may be difficult to have repaired or find parts

Similar Products Used
Canon AE-1 Program
Agfa 35 mm (don't recall model #)

Review Date
May 14, 2008

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Reviewed by
coa75 , Intermediate

Price Paid
$0.00

Photography Experience
11-20 years , Outdoor

Summary
Classiic 35mm SLR.

Strengths
Bright viewfinder, fast respond from lightmeter, automatic works fine, good lenses with sharp and contrast image.

Weaknesses
No mechanical speed. Too heavy.

Similar Products Used
Olzmpus OM-1/OM-2
Praktica MTL 5B

Review Date
December 29, 2005

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Reviewed by
Braxus , Intermediate

Price Paid
$0.00

Photography Experience
11-20 years , Outdoor

Summary
I inherited this camera from my mom. I've used this camera for many years, even borrowed it when it was my moms camera. Its a solid camera and takes decent pics. The exposure can be under at times, but this can be a learning curve for this body. This would make a great beginners camera. I've dropped this one onto pavement and had it repaired. It still works. Also the FD lenses for this thing are very cheap these days. I like the big bright viewfinder in this camera, something the newer EOS models leave to be desired. The functions are basic and easy to use. I use this camera as a backup to my EOS setup now.

Strengths
Decent build quality
Cheap price used

Weaknesses
Older model may be hard to get parts for repair depending where you live

Similar Products Used
Canon T-70
Canon T-90

Review Date
August 10, 2005

Overall Rating
 3 of 5

Value Rating
 3 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Reviewed by
Bidi , Intermediate

Price Paid
$150.00 at Store at 'Den Haag,

Photography Experience
11-20 years , Fine Art

Summary
This camera was my first Canon FD one.
At the beginning it was amazing, because of it's shutterspeed priority and handeling and ofcourse being a decent SLR.
But when I started to take more effort in making pictures al sorts of shortcomings came into daylight.
The lightmeter isn't really good enough for making slides, the AE-lock button is not handy either. No interchangable vieuwfinder or mattescreen.

Strengths
Easy to use, the ideal beginner SLR. Quite sturdy. Easy to change shutterspeeds.

Weaknesses
Poor lightmeter. The metering range also is just too small, at some shutterspeeds it doesn't do a thing. Poor vieuwfinder info. No interchangable mattescreen or vieuwfinder. AE lock button clumsy, lack of functions.
Not really a match for the A1, EF or F1

Similar Products Used
Canon F1, A1, EF. Praktica TL, Ricoh 35ZF, Olympus C3000.

Review Date
January 3, 2004

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 6 votes

Reviewed by
JGrubman , Intermediate

Price Paid
$250.00 at unknown

Photography Experience
2-5 years , Outdoor

Summary
The first maintenance I did on this camera was change the battery. It finally died after 20 years.
I took it to Ecuador and used it constantly, in the rainforest, the tropical jungles, beaches, weekly at high altitude volcanic hikes, and through the Galapagos. In 6 months it went through every temperature range and climate extreme known on Earth (well, not Everest or the Mariana Trench) and came out SMILING. Best of all, no one tried to steal it since it looked so much older than the sleek automatic stuff they sell today.
Great for beginners who want to learn how to really use a camera and for the experienced who want great pictures.
And for anyone who needs to effectively beat a zapatista ladron during an insurgency.

Strengths
All manual except the light metering, you can learn a thing or two about photography when you have to adjust everything for each picture. It's tough. It's resilient. It has tons of accessories. It's not your new age plastic point and shoot soccer mom camera. It's a freakin ROCK.

Weaknesses
-Some people say it's heavy. I say work out more. Heavy camera = steadier shot
Not really a weakness I guess.
-Repairs to this camera may be costly