NIKON CAMERAS: Their History, and their Cameras Today:

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Nikon cameras is obviously one of the big names in the camera industry. It has covered a lot of people’s desires, because they make a camera model that covers every type of photographer, and including the Professional Photographer. The type of equipment they make for every type of photographer is also very well built, and designed to work with their amazing lenses. Nikon is an actual lens manufacture, and they have become famous for their lenses.

Let’s take a look at the History of Nikon cameras, and see how many of you Nikon users even knew about this information:

black nikon dslr camera lens cover near white petaled flowers
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Headquarters for Nikon Inc. —– By Kakidai – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=43641774

Nikon Corporation (株式会社ニコン, Kabushiki-gaisha Nikon) (UK: /ˈnɪkɒn/, US: /ˈnaɪkɒn/; Japanese: [ɲiꜜkoɴ] (listen)), also known just as Nikon, is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, specializing in optics and imaging products. The companies held by Nikon form the Nikon Group.[3]

West Building of Nikon in Nishi-Ōi, Tokyo

Nikon’s products include cameras, camera lenses, binoculars, microscopes, ophthalmic lenses, measurement instruments, rifle scopes, spotting scopes, and the steppers used in the photolithography steps of semiconductor fabrication, of which it is the world’s second largest manufacturer.[4] The company is the eighth-largest chip equipment maker as reported in 2017.[5] Also, it has diversified into new areas like 3D printing and regenerative medicine to compensate for the shrinking digital camera market.[6][7][8][9]

Among Nikon’s notable product lines are Nikkor imaging lenses (for F-mount cameras, large format photography, photographic enlargers, and other applications), the Nikon F-series of 35 mm film SLR cameras, the Nikon D-series of digital SLR cameras, the Coolpix series of compact digital cameras, and the Nikonos series of underwater film cameras. Nikon’s main competitors in camera and lens manufacturing include Canon, Sony, Fujifilm, Panasonic, Pentax, and Olympus.

Founded on July 25, 1917 as Nippon Kōgaku Kōgyō Kabushikigaisha (日本光学工業株式会社 “Japan Optical Industries Co., Ltd.”), the company was renamed to Nikon Corporation, after its cameras, in 1988. Nikon is a member of the Mitsubishi group of companies (keiretsu)

black dslr camera
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Nikon Corporation was established on 25 July 1917 when three leading optical manufacturers merged to form a comprehensive, fully integrated optical company known as Nippon Kōgaku Tōkyō K.K. Over the next sixty years, this growing company became a manufacturer of optical lenses (including those for the first Canon cameras) and equipment used in cameras, binoculars, microscopes and inspection equipment. During World War II the company operated thirty factories with 2,000 employees, manufacturing binoculars, lenses, bomb sights, and periscopes for the Japanese military.

Reception outside Japan

After the war Nippon Kōgaku reverted to producing its civilian product range in a single factory. In 1948, the first Nikon-branded camera was released, the Nikon I.[11] Nikon lenses were popularised by the American photojournalist David Douglas Duncan. Duncan was working in Tokyo when the Korean War began. Duncan had met a young Japanese photographer, Jun Miki, who introduced Duncan to Nikon lenses. From July 1950 to January 1951, Duncan covered the Korean War.[12] Fitting Nikon optics (especially the NIKKOR-P.C 1:2 f=8,5 cm)[13] to his Leica rangefinder cameras produced high contrast negatives with very sharp resolution at the centre field.

Nikon – Today:

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TOKYO – Nikon Corporation (Nikon) is pleased to announce that four of its products have been successful at the EISA Awards 2021-2022, presented by the Expert Imaging and Sound Association (EISA). The Nikon Z 6II full-frame mirrorless camera won the Advanced Camera award, while the Nikon Z 5 full-frame mirrorless camera received the Best Buy Camera (full-frame) award. NIKKOR lenses were also winners, with the NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S receiving the Professional Telephoto Zoom Lens award, and the NIKKOR Z MC 50mm f/2.8 given the Macro Lens award.

The Expert Imaging and Sound Association (EISA) is a collaboration between 60 expert magazines from 29 countries across the globe, specialized in the fields of photography, mobile devices, hi-fi, home theater audio, home theater display & video, and in-car electronics. For approximately 40 years, EISA has chosen and honored the best imaging products released in Europe over the previous year in a number of categories.

Full-frame Mirrorless Camera “Nikon Z 6II”
Full-frame Mirrorless Camera “Nikon Z 5”
Interchangeable Lens for Mirrorless Cameras “NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S”
Interchangeable Lens for Mirrorless Cameras “NIKKOR Z MC 50mm f/2.8”

As you can see, Nikon is one of the best cameras on the market. They consistently win camera awards, and their lenses too.

I think that it would be safe to say that Nikon is currently the number 1 selling camera worldwide. And they have done it with their reputation of being a good strong, well built camera that can take some abuse, and that is why the professional photographers like this camera.

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