Total Production of NIKKOR Lenses for Interchangeable Lens Cameras Reaches Seventy Million

June 14, 2012

TOKYO - Nikon Corporation is pleased to announce that total production of NIKKOR lenses* for Nikon interchangeable lens cameras reached 70 million at the end of May 2012. Moreover, total production of AF-S lenses equipped with the Silent Wave Motor (SWM), the autofocus motor developed by Nikon, has reached 30 million.

*Interchangeable lenses for Nikon SLR cameras and Nikon 1, advanced camera with interchangeable lenses.

Seventy Million NIKKOR lenses

NIKKOR is Nikon's brand of photographic lenses. In 1933, the large-format lens for aerial photography was released as the first NIKKOR lens.
After that, lenses for SLR cameras continued to evolve based on Nikon's own cutting edge technologies. Last year, the new Nikon 1 advanced cameras with interchangeable lenses and the 1 NIKKOR line of dedicated lenses were released on the market.
1 NIKKOR lenses, with which incredibly compact and lightweight sizes suited to the small Nikon 1 cameras have been achieved, have inherited all of the optical technologies, superior quality, and advanced technologies Nikon has cultivated over the years. 1 NIKKOR lenses are designed to provide sharp rendering with both still photos and movies. What's more, the retractable lens mechanism enables a compact size that is convenient for carrying around.

Total production of NIKKOR lenses reached 65 million in October of 2011. Since then, Nikon has continued to actively develop new products under the NIKKOR brand and has released four 1 NIKKOR lenses with a simple design and available in various colors perfectly suited to the excellent portability of the compact and lightweight Nikon 1 J1 and Nikon 1 V1, the first two cameras in the new Nikon 1 series. In addition, new FX-format compatible NIKKOR lenses that maximize the potential of high-performance cameras such as Nikon's new D4 flagship digital-SLR camera, and D800 and D800E digital-SLR cameras equipped with image sensors with an effective pixel count of 36.3-million pixels for incredible definition and image quality.

Thirty million SWM-equipped NIKKOR lenses

The Silent Wave Motor, or SWM, is an ultrasonic autofocus motor developed by Nikon. Nikon's SWM converts "traveling waves" into rotational energy to focus the optics. This enables extremely smooth, quiet and comfortable autofocusing. Among the first lenses for which Nikon adopted the SWM was the Ai AF-S Nikkor 300mm f/2.8D IF-ED, released in 1996. Since then, the SWM has been built into a total of 60* different lenses of all types, from ultra wide-angle to super telephoto DX- and FX-format lenses, zoom lenses, and even Micro lenses. It has been adopted for more than 90% of NIKKOR lenses for Nikon DSLR cameras currently manufactured.

*The total number of NIKKOR lenses equipped with the SWM currently available (as of June 14, 2012).

NIKKOR lenses are used by and very popular with a wide variety of photographer, from those new to digital-SLR photography to seasoned professionals. Nikon will continue to expand the NIKKOR lineup through the continued development of extremely reliable products.

The NIKKOR brand

As the brand name for Nikon lenses, NIKKOR has become synonymous with high-performance, high-quality SLR lenses. The NIKKOR name comes from adding "R"–a common practice in the naming of photographic lenses at the time the name was established–to "Nikko", the Romanized abbreviation for Nippon Kogaku K.K. In 1933, the large-format lens for aerial photography was released with the name Aero-Nikkor.

NIKKOR lenses incorporate optical technologies that are always ahead of the times. The OP Fisheye-Nikkor 10mm f/5.6 fisheye lens for SLR cameras, released in 1968, was the world's first lens to incorporate aspherical lens elements. The Ultra Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8 released in 1962 served as the template for projection lenses employed in Nikon IC steppers and scanners that currently boast the world's highest level of resolution. What's more, NIKKOR lenses for the latest SLR cameras utilize a number of cutting-edge technologies that originated with the development of IC steppers and scanners, including Nano Crystal Coat, which virtually eliminates internal lens element reflections across a wide range of wavelengths.

From initial design and development, production and quality is controlled in accordance with Nikon's strict standards. The superior quality of NIKKOR lenses that fully satisfies users is ensured with the highest quality designs and manufacturing, as well as very strict final inspection.

The current NIKKOR brand offers a rich lineup of more than 70 lenses, including fisheye lenses, super wide-angle to super telephoto lenses, zoom lenses, Micro lenses, and PC-E lenses.