Nikon F Lenses

Nikon F SLR mount, introduced in 1959 | 35 mm film, full-frame digital, and APS-C DX variants

Nikon F is one of the longest-running interchangeable-lens mounts in photography. Introduced with the Nikon F in 1959, its original mechanical bayonet survived through metering prong changes, AI indexing, AF screw-drive, in-lens AF-S motors, electronic apertures, vibration reduction, and DSLR-era CPU contacts.

That continuity makes F-mount pages unusually broad. A single mount family contains early rangefinder-influenced SLR optics, classic manual Nikkors, professional AF-D and AF-S lenses, DX lenses for APS-C DSLRs, perspective-control lenses, and late high-performance full-frame DSLR designs.

The tradeoff is historical complexity: compatibility depends heavily on body and lens generation. For optical comparison, though, the continuity is valuable because it lets decades of Nikon design practice sit under one mount family while the surrounding camera technology changes dramatically.