Introduction
In 1975 Vivitar introduced the "Series 1" line of lenses. They were intended to compete
with the best offerings of the major camera manufacturers, albeit at a very high price -- they were quite expensive
even by OEM standards. Nonetheless, discriminating photographers who could afford the price snapped them up and they
are still much sought-after by photographers willing to give up auto focus in return for top quality optics,
construction and versatility.
The most famous of the Series One lenses was the 70-210 macro zoom. One of the first zooms to
offer any kind of macro capability, it offered outstanding optics in a highly versatile package. There were several
versions produced over the years, the first three of which are still very desirable lenses. The last two manual focus
versions are of much poorer optical quality and are aren't really comparable to the earlier versions.
After the five versions shown here, Vivitar sold some really poor lenses under the
"Series 1" label, which contributed greatly to the loss of prestige of the brand. Any of the autofocus
"Series 1" lenses should be avoided, as should any of the ones that have maximum apertures of f/4.5-5.6.
Variants 1-5 (left to right) of the Vivitar Series 1 70-210 Macro Zoom
Image copyright ©2003 Frederick Wasti
I started this page almost by accident: I purchased an example of version 3 of the 70-210 Series 1
for the astonishing price of $20.00 because it had a stuck diaphragm. My plan was to repair it and sell it at a nice
profit. After affecting the repair I thought, "Well, let's just shoot a roll of film to see how good
it really is". After getting the processed slides any thoughts of parting with this lens were immediately banished!
I gathered information about various versions of this lens and put them on a web page as a temporary (or so I thought)
reference for members of the Pentax mailing list. But before long it was
getting so much traffic that I decided to keep it on line. permanently.
I have owned examples of the first three versions of this lens, though I have since sold off all but version 3.
Fred Wasti has generously allowed me to use his photo of the Series 1 lens line-up.
The 70-210 Series 1 has become one of my main hiking and backpacking lenses. It's light, reasonably fast
and replaces several other lenses, not the least of which is a dedicated macro lens. The 1:2.5 ratio of the Vivitar is
often good enough for flower and plant "macro" photography on trail, but I've recently started using it in
conjunction with an achromatic (two element) close-up diopter. The one I use is the now-discontinued
Sigma +1.6 diopter
which yields approximately 1:1 max. reproduction ratio on this lens at 210mm. It's a 58mm thread, but on a reduced-frame DSLR it
works fine with a 62-58mm step-down ring (no vignetting).
In terms of sharpness I can't really fault the Vivitar at all. It does produce a different color
rendition than my Pentax lenses, though. "Lacking in warmth" sort of describes it, but not quite.
Bokeh isn't bad but flare resistance, not surprisingly, is nowhere near as good as Pentax. When I have to travel light
I have no hesitation in bringing the Vivitar along, knowing it can produce professionally sharp results.
Below is my ever-evolving, ever-expanding compendium of data on these lenses. I hope you find it useful!
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Note 1: Pentax-specific: Be aware that early versions do not have an "A"
aperture setting and require "green button" stop-down metering with Pentax DSLR's.
Note 2:
Pentax-specific: The presence of the of the "A" settingt, in addition to its high resolution, is what makes version 3 so
desirable today, but Vivitar/Komine only added this feature part way through the production run
so not all version 3 lenses have it: Be sure to check before buying.
Note 3: Version 4 was also made in a hideous
gold plated variation. Optically and
mechanically identical to the standard version 4, but with a finish intended, apparently, to appeal to gangsta
rappers and pimps. It might be worth seeking out if you have the equally ghastly
gold plated Pentax LX. ;-)
Note 4: Version 5, the "Q-DOS" is for 3-D photography (but otherwise
identical to version 4).
See this web site
for more information.
Note 5: The Cosina-made 4th version of this lens has apparently been made
with both 58mm and 62mm filter threads. The 62mm version is the more recent and is still sometimes found
new, usually on eBay auctions. Exercise caution if you consider buying one of these lenses without
seeing it: Some sellers would like you to confuse the 62mm v4 with the much-sought-after version 3 (Komine).
The less desirable versions of this lens are the ones that have "Vivitar" molded into the focus/zoom grip.
The 62mm "version 4" may even be a different design entirely. I'm currently looking into this
possibility and if it proves to be the case it will be added to the table as "version 6". Remember: The first
three versions are the ones sought for their optical quality.
There are many other excellent third-party lenses, that is lenses that aren't made by the major camera manufacturers.
An excellent source of information is Robert Monaghan's
"Third Party Lenses Resource Megasite".
Warning: There is so much good information on the Third-Party Lens Resource site that you may end up spending several hours browsing your way
through its labyrinthine network of links... But only if the site is actually online — it frequently disappears entirely for weeks at a time
and sometimes certain pages vanish for no apparent reason, so clicking on any of these links is a little like playing the lottery.
When it's up, it has an entire section on "cult" lenses, with a section specifically
devoted to Vivitar lenses.
