Series of Single Lens Reflex Canon cameras beginning with the AE-1 released in 1976 by Canon Inc. The 'A' portion of the name stood for "Automatic" which was a selling feature of this product line. The AE-1 was the first Canon SLR camera with "Automatic Exposure" setting. In the case of the AE-1, this was shutter priority. The A-1, released in 1978, allowed for aperture priority as well.