In fact #Kwanon (became #Canon) and #Nikon are said to have gained credibility during the Vietnam War, as war photographers saw their #Leica|s and #Contax|es succumb to Vietnamese conditions and had to buy available Japanese products. The lenses were not very good at the edges of the field but for war use that didn't matter, and by the time anyone noticed the Japanese had reverse engineered lenses they'd acquired and were doing much better. (r b)