These are the best Nikon lenses for underwater photography, chosen for how they pair reliable AF, clean color, and edge discipline with housings, domes, and wet optics—so reefs, wrecks, big animals, and tiny critters render sharp and vibrant whether you’re shooting stills or hybrid video on modern Z bodies or F-mount classics via FTZ. Underwater is about two primary kits: wide behind a dome (to minimize refraction and keep corners tidy) and macro behind a flat port (for magnification and working distance). On Z full-frame, anchor macro with the NIKKOR Z MC 105mm f/2.8 VR S—class-leading flatness, near-APO control on reflective shells and fish eyes, quiet AF with limiters, and VR that helps in surge—plus the compact Z MC 50mm f/2.8 for skittish subjects in low viz and tighter spaces; add a quality wet diopter (strong: SMC/CMC class; moderate: +5/+7) to the 105 for super-macro when the ocean is calm. For rectilinear wide, the NIKKOR Z 14–30mm f/4 S excels behind large 180–230 mm domes (stopped to f/8–f/11 for clean corners), while the lighter Z 17–28mm f/2.8 works well behind mid/large domes and helps at dusk or in caves; for travel-light flexibility, the tiny Z 28–60mm f/4–5.6 is a sleeper star when paired with a premium wet wide converter (WWL-1/WWL-C class) on a flat port—true edge-to-edge sharpness, instant switch to macro with a flip-on diopter, and fewer lens swaps on boats. Since Z has no native FX fisheye, adapt F-mount favorites via FTZ: the AF-S 8–15mm f/3.5–4.5E Fisheye is the benchmark CFWA lens behind a small/mini dome for dramatic reef scenes and big animals at arm’s length, and the AF Fisheye 16mm f/2.8D remains a compact classic; for DX, the Tokina 10–17mm fisheye (F-mount) remains beloved for range and close focus. F-mount macro staples also shine via FTZ: AF-S Micro-NIKKOR 105mm f/2.8G VR (workhorse macro), AF-S Micro 60mm f/2.8G (flat-field fish portraits, product/ID work), and the long-working-distance Micro-NIKKOR 200mm f/4D for shy subjects in clear water. Z DX shooters can build a nimble kit with the Z MC 50/2.8 for macro on a flat port, the Z DX 12–28mm PZ VR behind a dome for stabilized video and reef scenics, and the Z DX 24mm f/1.7 for available-light fish portraits in shallow, bright water; add a wet wide converter to 28–60 (on FX) or a compact mid-zoom if your housing supports it. What makes these “best” below the surface: fast, repeatable AF that holds eyes through particulate, coatings that resist veiling flare from sunballs, restrained CA so white sand and specular scales stay clean, geometry that plays nicely with dome curvature, and sensible front diameters/housing support for wet optics; macro lenses with long working distance reduce silt clouds and critter spook, while fisheyes let you get very close (less water between lens and subject = less backscatter). Technique turns optics into keepers—choose a big dome (180–230 mm) for rectilinear zooms to tame corners, or a mini dome for CFWA with fisheye; stop wides to ~f/8–f/13 for corner discipline, run macro around f/8–f/16 depending on diopter strength, and favor 1/125–1/250 with strobes (1/60–1/125 for ambient blends); get close, shoot slightly upward, and mind strobe placement to avoid backscatter (pull strobes wide, feather edges across the subject); for video, use S-line lenses for quiet AF/low breathing, set 1/50–1/125 “cinema” shutter, ride Auto ISO limits, and white-balance to depth or use filters for ambient looks. Practical kit recipes are simple: FX macro spine—Z MC 105/2.8 S on a flat port with a flip diopter; FX wide rectilinear—Z 14–30/4 S behind a 180–230 mm dome (add Z 17–28/2.8 for caves/blue hour); FX travel-wet system—Z 28–60 with WWL-1/WWL-C + flip diopter for reef-to-super-macro in one dive; FX fisheye—AF-S 8–15E via FTZ behind a mini dome for CFWA and big animals; DX versatile—Z DX 12–28 PZ VR in a dome + Z MC 50/2.8 for macro; FTZ value—AF-S Micro 105/2.8G VR + AF-S 8–15E or Tokina 10–17 fisheye. Whether you’re nose-to-dome with turtles, stitching wreck exteriors at twilight, isolating nudibranch rhinophores at 2:1, or filming smooth reef fly-throughs, the best Nikon underwater lenses (paired with the right ports and wet optics) deliver close-working versatility, clean corners, and reliable focus that make the underwater world look crisp, dimensional, and vividly alive straight out of camera.