Speculation about Nikon’s mirrorless camera ambitions is heating up, and two new patents are adding fuel to the fire. Nikon has patented two new ultra-fast lenses for a full frame mirrorless camera system. One is a 52mm f/0.9 and the other is a 36mm f/1.2.



Nikon Rumors reports that the patents were filed in Japan and that this news bodes well for Nikon photographers who are hoping for a game-changing camera from Nikon.

“Patents are no guarantee for future products, but I think everything so far points to a new full frame mirrorless camera with a new mount that can accommodate a 50mm f/0.9 lens,” Nikon Rumors writes.

There are also murmurings that Nikon has been building a new adapter for the upcoming mirrorless camera.

“Reportedly Nikon is putting a lot of effort in the development of a new lens adapter for their next mirrorless camera,” Nikon Rumors reports. “The new adapter is supposed to be very complex and it will be expensive.”

The idea of the adapter seems to be to ensure that autofocusing is fast and that older Nikkor lenses (including AF-D lenses) are compatible with the new mirrorless system. One patent that Nikon recently filed in Japan seems to show an adapter that could fit this description:

The patent shows an adapter that contains a pellicle/translucent mirror and a built-in phase-detection autofocusing module.

Nikon has publicly stated that it’s building a mirrorless camera that raises the bar. That could mean anything at this point, but a Nikon full frame mirrorless camera with 52mm f/0.9 and 36mm f/1.2 lenses could certainly fit the bill.