| Author: | | New Member Registered: June, 2017 Posts: 15 | | Review Date: February 8, 2024 | Recommended | Price: $90.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Good IQ | | Cons: | only 2x zoom range - outclassed by the Pentax SMC 135mm F3.5 | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 6
Handling: 9
Value: 9
Camera Used: P30
| |
I rate this a great lens from NEW but beware secondhand - I had the 2-touch and the push-pull versions.
For a time I just carried a 28mm and this as my walkabout camera kit.
It is better by far than the Olympus OM 75-150mm which is soft at the 75mm end and today suffers from a lot of breakdown of the cemented compound lens elements.
The Vivitar can be had as a HOYA brand, and also as the Nikon E (which I also have!) and probably others too - a feature of late 20th century lens making.
Ultimately though, the SMC 135mm F3.5 is sharper, transmits more light and contrast, is smaller and as I now use film for "slow photography" I use prime lenses way more than zooms (I am back to the classic 19-28-50-135-200-300mm set). As a result I "zoom with my feet" & this lens is now unused.
My experience of secondhand zooms today is bad - only 1/4 of those I have bought on eBay is good when it arrives - the rest are returned because they are not able to "function as intended" as eBay specifies for selling items as "used". The list of troubles looks like this:
- jammed or sticky apertures (the mechanics are complex and have more chances for failure) and
- near all have bad haze (lots of grease on all those mechanical parts to vapourise) which is near impossible to clean, and
- fungus - fed by all that vapourised grease.
- Add to that zoom creep and lens cementing problems as the lens balsam dries out and you realise why old zooms are a lottery for buyers!
My experience in a nutshell - There are very few good zooms from the 1970s-90s but very few bad 135mm's !
| | | | | | | New Member Registered: February, 2024 Location: England Posts: 5 | | Review Date: February 5, 2024 | Recommended | Price: $13.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Reasonably sharp wide open. Fairly compact. Well built. | | Cons: | May require removal of the aperture lever guard. | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: Pentax K110D
| |
I was offered this (early separate zoom/focus model) for £10. I’m not usually a fan of zooms but after reading many reviews I thought I’d give it a try. So glad I did! It’s beautifully made - even down to the felt lined pull out hood. I did need to perform a bit of surgery to remove the aperture lever guard but it was worth the trouble. I’ve fell in love with this lens. Nice colour rendition - not up there with vintage Pentax lens warmth but not that far off. Decent contrast too. Previous to getting this I had a gap between the 50 and 80mm focal lengths. I’m now a fan of shooting at 70mm. Obviously it has more reach than 50mm but still has a useful bit of width too. A lovely looking lens and everything about it just feels right. It has a permanent place in my camera bag.I can’t think of any negative aspects of this lens.
| | | | | Site Supporter Registered: May, 2015 Location: Hampshire Posts: 892 | | Review Date: September 6, 2018 | Recommended | Price: $12.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Can be found at bargain price | | Cons: | best after F:5.6, focussing near infinity. | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 8
Value: 10
Camera Used: K-5
| |
A bargain at $12, push pull one ring lens (Kiron) including a matched 2x multiplier in it's case.
The lens seems well made, not large or heavy, no zoom creep, smooth and positive in action and mine is in almost mint condition.
I like the fact that 150mm is the shortest the lens can be while 70mm it is fully extended.
It is quite sharp for a zoom lens, equal maybe to the Pentax 75-150mm but;
It can show some CA at wider apertures!
The matched multiplier works well though it does exacerbate the CA at wider apertures. With digital cameras offering such good images at ISO 800 (and more) it is still very usable in bright conditions.
The lens has a short throw from 20 feet to infinity which makes focusing on distant objects require care but closer than 20 feet focussing is quite easy.
The lens cost to me was probably me getting lucky but the 2x zooms in this range seems quite common so film users must have liked it too.
A great bargain, I like it.
An image and crop taken this morning while appreciating some sun. F:8, from about 8 feet, ISO 400 on my K-5, hand held.
 | | | | | New Member Registered: March, 2013 Posts: 15 | | Review Date: February 16, 2018 | Recommended | Price: $20.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Sharp with a useful close focusing function. | | Cons: | A bit slow at essentially F4 (F3.8) | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 6
Bokeh: 7
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: Pentax K1, Pentax ME Super, Pentax MX
| |
I really like this lens on both film and the Pentax K1. It is sharp, the macro (close focusing function is useful, and the lens features nice colors. I paid about $20 with the matching 2x teleconverter. Given that the lens alone can be found on ebay for $10 it is a great bargain.
My version did need modification to a shield (remove, cut down with a dremel, and replace).  | | | | | | | New Member Registered: January, 2017 Posts: 19 | | Review Date: October 3, 2017 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 10 |
|
Here is another lens that is so lovely I'd like to take it under my pillow at night!
My copy is the older one (close focusing version) and has some fungus inside the front twin element's cement layer, so it's very difficult to remove. Even infected it's pretty sharp and produces nice images. I leave the details unrated because I don't know how good a clean version would be.
Handling is very nice, the lens is extremely pretty (and thin), it can focus close and it has a built-in lens hood.
I wouldn't change it to anything.
| | | | | New Member Registered: October, 2016 Posts: 8
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: November 5, 2016 | Recommended | Price: $8.25
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp, Bokeh, Inexpensive | | Cons: | Full stop settings, front barrel rotates | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: Olympus EM10
| |
I recently purchased this lens from KEH. I was rated as a "bargain". I wasn't sure if I was going to keep it because the whole barrel was loose from the mount. Everything else was great. The glass was clear and the aperture blades worked beautifully. So I started to disassemble it and quickly found the problem. I tightened all the screws and put it back together and was blown away by its image quality. Even wide open it was very good. Stop down one stop and it got very sharp, all the way to f11. I believe this version is made by Tokina and it has a 55mm front thread and deeply recessed front element. By far the bargain lens purchase of the year for me.
 | | | | | New Member Registered: June, 2014 Location: Moscow Posts: 4
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: January 23, 2015 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | | | Cons: | | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: Pentax K-50
| |
I bought this lens for $14.99 for eBaY without 2x the teleconverter. Even before purchase according to photos on eBaY it was visible that used a lens VERY often. Outside it was quite dirty but the optical system was in perfect tune. Very pure and without any defects. Besides the seller besides photos of a lens published on eBaY and the photo received by means of this lens that intrigued me. After receiving a lens I noticed that it is constantly widely open on F3.5. Well - the diaphragm stuck... I partially sorted it, cleaned and... everything earned as it is necessary... the result surprised me a little...
[IMG] IMGP2519 by korvinohc2i, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG] IMGP2513 by korvinohc2i, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG] IMGP2515 by korvinohc2i, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG] IMGP2525 by korvinohc2i, on Flickr[/IMG]
and photo of the lens:
[IMG] IMG_20150123_230605 by korvinohc2i, on Flickr[/IMG]
Separately I want to notice that the lens is very well made, easy and compact and it it is very convenient to use. And if to take its price into account... it becomes clear why so often used it to me.  | | | | | New Member Registered: September, 2014 Posts: 14 | | Review Date: September 12, 2014 | Not Recommended | Price: $8.00
| Rating: 3 |
| Pros: | Build Quality | | Cons: | Not Very Sharp, Slow, Design, Far Minimum Focus Distance | | Sharpness: 5
Aberrations: 4
Bokeh: 3
Handling: 3
Value: 5
Camera Used: Canon EOS 60D with adapter and Pentax P30n
| |
I have the Tasman rebrand of this exact lens, it isn't very sharp and has plenty of aberrations, zooming is horrible, focussing too, and the design could be a lot better.
Color rendition is flat, dull, and rather depressing. Zoom lenses are notorious for this and this lens is no exception to the rule.
The minimal focus distance is way too far away!
The only thing I like about this lens is the build quality as it is very sturdy.
The only reason I own this lens is because I purchased it as a bundle with a faulty Super-A and a Pentax-M 50mm f2 in outstanding condition at a hospice (charity) shop that I volunteer at.
I have only kept it because it is a lens to stick on the end of my faulty Super-A which looks nice. If I receive another nicer faulty lens, this one will hit the trash.
I would NOT recommend this lens.  | | | | | Junior Member Registered: November, 2009 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 42 | | Review Date: February 11, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $50.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Very well built, very sharp and compact. | | Cons: | None | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 10
Value: 10
| |
A VERY good lens. Very sharp and well built. Considerably smaller and more compact than the Nikon E 75-150 lens, which was made for Nikon by Kiron. It also does not get the horrendous zoom creep that the Nikon version is well known for. There is also a dedicated Kiron lens hood for it.
 | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: September, 2006 Location: North Idaho Posts: 696 | | Review Date: March 4, 2011 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | very solid construction, good optics, compact | | Cons: | none, some versions have large aperture pin guard flange which precludes use on a Pentax digital body | |
I have the two-touch version of this lens. Never did adjust to single touch zooms. I purchased this lens new in 1975 along with the "match multiplier", which is what Vivitar calls their 2x teleconverter for this lens. It is said to be "optically matched" to the zoom. At the time, I couldn't afford the highly desirable Series 1 Vivitar 70-210 zoom, so settled for its "baby brother", the 70-150/3.8 two-touch zoom.
It's a very small lens for its speed and focal length. The two-touch version includes a built-in, extractable lens hood. I love using this lens so much that I sent it in to a lens repair facility to have the aperture pin filed down so that it would work on the Pentax digital bodies. It retains a favored place in my lens kit bag, albeit usually without the matched multiplier. Heavy thing too. It would do some serious damage if ever hurled as a projectile.
Highly recommended if you are looking for a manual focus zoom in this focal range, especially since you can get them so inexpensively these days.
p.s. You will need to expose in Manual mode as it lacks the "A" auto aperture setting on the aperture ring.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: March, 2007 Posts: 3,381
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: March 6, 2010 | Recommended | Price: $30.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Solid build, sharp, inexpensive | | Cons: | lack of lens hood, not a true macro | |
This is an excellent quality manual lens with very good IQ (rate it 8.7). It was manufactured by Kiron with all metal construction and is fairly lightweight and compact. Several versions were produced in M42 and K mount. They can be found in a one and two touch focus version. These show up routinely for $10-$50 with and without the converter, are an great bargain and very under-rated in their performance. The macro designation should have been called close focus as it loses focus closer than 2' from the subject.
| | |
;)
;)
;)
