A few years ago I expanded my camera stable to include Canon FD-mount cameras. I did that with the intent to be more knowledgeable about a segment of the SLR world that I really knew little about except what I had read. Over the course of a year or so I acquired a half-dozen bodies and a bunch of lenses and accessories (surprise!). I felt pretty well-versed in the cameras that I had used, and appreciated the general robust build of the Canon FTb, and the other bodies were not bad, either. My favorite of the bunch was the Canon A-1, roughly equivalent to a Nikon FA, though more fiddly. Last year, feeling that I had way more cameras than necessary, I sold off ALL of the Canon gear that I had accumulated. Well, nature abhors a vacuum, so guess what happened? A few weeks ago, a friend gave me his Canon FTb with 50mm 1.4 and 28 f/2 lenses. Today, a curator at the museum gave me his Canon F-1 with 50mm 1.4, 50mm 3.5 macro, extension tube, 135mm 3.5, and 28mm 2.8 lenses. I could have said "no", but I never turn down a free camera. Both the Canon bodies are in good shape, though the F-1 definitely has a bit of brassing. I'll replace the mirror foam, check the light seals, install a new battery and give it a good cleaning. The lenses are in very good shape, and the 50 and 135 came with the proper Canon bayonet-mount lens hoods.
The Canon FTb QL.
I'll run some film through these two, and hang on to them. They are good examples of Canon's lineup back in the early 1970s. The F-1 is definitely a chunk of metal, and I look forward to shooting with it. The shutter is fairly quiet and the wind mechanism is pretty darn smooth. As Canon's answer to Nikon's F, it was a bit late in the game. Nevertheless, it's a fine camera.
