Nikon information and a brief history
Nikon is a multinational corporation, with headquarter in Tokyo, specialized in imaging products: cameras, lenses for cameras and other uses, binoculars, microscopes, 3D printing, integrated circuits, etc.
It was founded in 1917 as Nippon Kōgaku Kōgyō Kabushikigaisha as a merge of three optical companies, it was renamed to Nikon Corporation much later in 1988.
It is then one of the historical brand for photography, for tens of years competing with the other giant Canon.
Nikon produced some of the first digital reflex cameras for NASA since 1991.
Nikon was behind Canon in producing digital full-frame cameras, launching its first model D3 in 2007.
Many products are manufactured in Thailand as a way to cust high costs in Japan.
Nikon lens abbreviations
Main ones (apart for lens mount tag):
- ED: with an Extra low Dispersion element.
- FL: with a FLuorite element, that is a high-quality and light glass.
- PF: with a Phase Fresnel element, a type of lens to compensate for chromatic aberration through light diffraction.
- STM: with a STtepper Motor.
- VR: with Vibration Reduction, i.e. image stabilization built into the lens.