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Abbreviations

Model history (3)

Specification

Sources of data

• Manufacturer's technical data.
• Nikon Sales Manual (July 1977).
• Nikkor lenses sales manual (January 1979).
• Nikon Sales Manual (June 1978).

Manufacturer description #1

In contrast to other Fisheye-Nikkors which were primarily designed for scientific and industrial applications, this Fisheye-Nikkor has been designed to provide special effects in general photography. Other Fisheye-Nikkors produce a circular image on the film, but this lens delivers an image which fills the entire 24mm x 36mm film format. Its near hemispheric coverage of 170° provides extreme wideangle pictures with the dramatic perspective effect inherent in fisheye lenses.

With the combined effects of this Fisheye-Nikkor, the photographer can enjoy creating special ultra- wideangle effects - in advertising and other commercial photography, photojournalism and art photography. The lens is extremely portable, with its size and weight comparable to a normal lens. It has an automatic diaphragm and permits thru-the-Iens viewing and metering. Color aberration is well corrected, providing high contrast images even at full-aperture. The lens has three interchangeable filters plus one plain glass filter built into the lens barrel.

Manufacturer description #2

Sales Points

• Full-frame fisheye coverage of 170 degrees
• Very compact and lightweight - only 330 grams.
• Through-the-lens viewing and focusing down to one foot (0.3m).
• Built-in scalloped lens hood.
• Supplied with a set of 4 filters (plain glass, yellow, orange and red) built into a revolving turret and a slip-on front lens cap.
• Photographic uses include sweeping panoramic effects in sports, travel, photojournalism, advertising, and commercial work.

Typical characteristics of fisheye lenses

• Extreme angle of view (at least 180° diagonally);
• Circular types (the image circle of the lens is inscribed in the image frame) or diagonal types (cover the entire image frame);
• Usually of equidistant projection type, with the distance from the picture center to any given point always proportional to the angle from the optical axis to that point;
• Huge barrel distortion;
• Short closest focusing distance (0.20 - 0.30m with 35mm full-frame prime lenses);
• Very large depth of field, eliminating the need for autofocus or precise manual focusing;
• Due to the extreme angle of view and convex front element, front filters cannot be used;
• Often equipped with a filter turret with swivel-mounted filters;
• Often come with a small, built-in petal-shaped lens hood.

Notes

• This AI lens was designed for Nikon F3, EL2, EM, FE, FE2, FE10, FG-20, FM, FM2, FM10, FM3A, Nikkormat FT3 AI cameras and Nikon FA, FG, N2000, N6000 AI-S cameras.
• AI and AI-S lenses are backward compatible with Nikon F, F2, Nikkormat FS, FT, FT2, FTN, EL, ELW cameras.
• On Nikon digital SLR cameras, the automatic exposure metering with AI and AI-S lenses will not be available on D40, D40X, D60, D70, D70s, D80, D3000-D3500, D5000-D5600 series.

Other fisheye lenses in the Nikon F system

Lenses with similar focal length