At 21:18 3/27/02, Sean wrote:
Hello all,
After taking a little gander at what the local "King of Trade" had to
offer, i found i need a little advice. They've got an OM mount Vivitar
Series 1 70-210mm f/3.5 for C$99 (US$65). Looks to be in good condition,
though i didn't look REALLY close - but no fungus or scratches and the
aperture ring moves nicely & focus is smooth.
Anyway, my question is this: keeping in mind that i'm POOR (i.e. i can't
buy Zuiko primes), should i hang on to the Olympus Zuiko (Cosina) 70-210
f/4.5-5.6 that i already have (which seems to have a pretty bad
reputation), or should i replace it with this Vivitar Series 1 (which i
gather has a good reputation). I'll have to REALLY justify it to the
wife, so i need a clear cut decision! Help me out here!
Sean D.
Sean,
This is on the list as a "cult classic" lens and by my reckoning it's a
good price. You can read more about the Vivitar Series I lenses on this
list here:
http://people.smu.edu/rmonagha/third/cult.html#vivitar
From your description, it appears to be the 70-210 out of the "first"
series of Vivitar Series I lenses available up through at least 1980. Some
time in the 1990's, Vivitar produced a second series of Series I
lenses. The lenses out of the original series have an excellent reputation
as being much better than most other "non-OEM" lenses and challenged the
optical quality of many OEM designs.
I won't tell you that you *must* have it or that you should buy it; that
decision is yours. If it's in excellent cosmetic and has, as best you can
tell, perfect or nearly perfect optics, the price looks like it's a good
buy. You're right that the Cosina-made 70-210 OM lens does not have the
best reputation optically. Take a body with you and put the lens on
it. Focus through it on near and far objects and ensure it looks sharp in
the viewfinder. Obviously, this isn't the same as shooting some film
through it which is a much better test, but if there's anything very
seriously wrong (dropped, previously worked on improperly, etc.) it can
show up just looking through it on a camera body. You should find it gives
you a much brighter viewfinder, and critical focusing should be easier.
-- John
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