Originally posted by Jonathan Mac I've been after a Vivitar 19mm (in lieu if the rare and expensive M 20mm f/4) for a few years to replace my 19-35mm on film, which I only ever use at 19mm. The prime would be much smaller.
I picked mine up from Craigslist from an older photographer who was getting rid of his film-era kit. It is in immaculate condition, and a real bargain at $20. The Nikon to Fuji X adapter cost almost as much as the lens. My lens is the 19mm f/3.8 that was probably built by Cosina.
I've found the lens to be a decent performer once it is stopped down to f/5.6 or preferably f/8. It has the good film-era colors like my Takumars. The biggest drawback is that it flares badly if the sun isn't at your back.
One of the main reasons I bought the X-T20 was to be able to use my Takumars and all the other great lenses from the last days of film.
The Vivitar is the first wide-angle lens I have gotten to use, other than the kit zoom that came with the X-T20. The 19mm would give a field of view similar to a 28mm on an old film DSLR, and back in the day when I used a Spotmatic (the 1970s), 28mm would have been considered pretty wide. I never had anything except a 55 and 105 for the Spotmatic, so it has been a real eye-opener to use this wide angle lens - lots of fun!
Here's one of my mother's back yard in Florida, Fujifilm X-T20. Vivitar 19mm f/3.8 at f/8, 1/75, ISO800, uncropped.