Vivitar 24mm 1:2.8 Auto-Wide-Angle

From what little info I could find about this lens it seems to have been made by Tokina in the late 1970's. The camera, a Sears KS Super II, is all automatic with no manual option. From the one time that I used it I can say it performs well, however I don't get too excited about a camera without a manual option.









I wouldn't normally buy a camera like the Sears KS Super II on Ebay, however I noticed it had a couple of extra lens.  One was a Sears 135mm f/2.8 and the other was the lens featured here.  There also was the standard Sears f/2.0 lens.  All three are decent lenses and the price for the whole package was under $20. So I put it on my watch list and was pleased to win the auction for slightly less than $20.  I had been needing some K-mount lenses and I was very happy to get three new ones to try out for a low cost. I tend to think that if the Vivitar 24mm had been properly listed by itself that it would have gotten a better price than what I payed for all three lenses.  Especially since I have since found out that the Tokina version of the Vivitar 24mm has a very good reputation.

This image looks a lot better at a size that wouldn't be convenient for my blog.  I do have a fondness for the bare trees and shadows of winter.

I like a wide-angle for getting a different look with machinery.

Overall I have been pleased with the Vivitar 24mm.  It may be slightly less sharp than my Canon 24mm, however to me there isn't a great difference in the performance of the two lenses.  Which I think speaks well for the Vivitar.


















I took these photos with my Pentax K1000 on Kentmere 400 film developed in Xtol.  I think the Kentmere 400 does pretty well in Xtol.  Still my next roll of bulk film is going to be some Ilford HP5.  It doesn't cost a lot more than the Kentmere and from the single rolls I have used in the past the results of the HP5 is more what I am looking for in B&W.  Still the Kentmere has come to earn some respect and I wouldn't discourage anyone from trying it out.

I am excited that I should be getting a Zenit S this week.  It is a Soviet 1950's SLR.  Basically, it is a Zorgi rangefinder with a reflex-box added.  I only recently learned about it and was enamored by its appearance. So I should have something to report about my experience in meeting the Zenti S in person soon.  The picture is from Wiki Commons.