Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

I have a number of Vivitar lenses, both standard & Series One. Series One are better quality of course, but several of the standard ones aren't too shabby either...Vivitar (was owned by Ponder & Best back in the day) & Soligor (owned by Allied Impex) never made lenses, but bought &rebranded lenses made by any number of Japanese lens makers (over 30 smaller companies)... From the late 70's to the late 80's, you could tell who made the lens by the first 2 digits of the serial numbers. Kino Precision (aka Kiron #22), Komine (#28) & Tokina (#37) made the majority of the better ones.

JCam Loc: MD Eastern Shore

I had a Vivitar 80-210 on a Canon AE-1 back in the 80's; it was a good lens, but remember it was in the 35mm film days and the only thing amateurs did to pictures was enlarge & print them them PP being a whole different level of skill.

Today with Digital and powerful PP programs, if the more experienced say look elsewhere, I'd follow their advice.

dar_clicks Loc: Utah

I wouldn't urge anyone to rush out to buy one since there are better options nowadays, but a used 70-210 in a store's display case for $50.00 a few years ago filled a gap in what I had then for my D700. It is the 2nd Edition (Tokina) which is AI plus the F-type metering prong so it works quite well on the D700 and older F-series film cameras as well -- & decently sharp. The 3rd edition was a little sharper, but I prefer this one because it is constant f/3.5 throughout the zoom range.

Research these carefully because anything after the 1st four editions are not very good. Oh yeah, the filter size on mine is 62mm and the screw-on Nikon 2-element close-up filters give really good close-ups with creamy-as-silk out-of-focus areas (dare I say "bokeh"?) but nowhere near as handy to use as a true macro lens.

Goofy, the Rockwell link in your post didn't work for me. Try
http://www.kenrockwell.com/vivitar/70-210mm.htm

Another page on the 70-210 Series 1 (there are several)
http://www.robertstech.com/vivitar.htm

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

I beg to differ on using the older lenses. Both of my Nikon DSLR's will meter with the older manual focus Nikkor & 3rd party Nikon lenses...Without having to resort to using an adapter...The older lenses were excellent in resolution in the center with falloff towards the edges (common even in today's lenses). My cameras, being DX, only use that central portion, thus take advantage of the "sweet spot" of the old lenses. I have had numerous images taken with the old lenses that have been published, online & in print. Don't dismiss them offhand. Doing so is doing a disservice to yourself & others. Many of the old Nikkors I have were "Pro" quality lenses back in film days. Compare the cost of them now with something comparable. It's no contest. Do the newer lenses have new coatings or lens element construction ?. Of course they do. Much of the advantages of them can be compensated for in Post. Most times, the differences in images taken with older manual focus lenses as opposed to new lenses can't even be discerned in images taken in real world shooting (as opposed to bench tests) Unless one is shooting commercially & needs the latest & greatest, the older lenses can equate to quite a savings that can be applied to other purchases. Many of the macro shots on my Flickr stream are taken with a mid 80's Lester Dine 105mm F2.8 macro lens... The IQ is top notch. This lens was marketed to the Dental profession for inter-oral photography. The lens was made for the Dine corp (they are still in business) by Kino, who made a number of Vivitar's Series One lenses. I also have a number of other Series One lenses as well as other lenses considered "cult" lenses like the Vivitar 24mm F2 & 28mm F2.... The older lenses hold their value very well considering , on eBay & other used gear sites, as they are sought out not only by Nikon Shooters, but Canon (for video) & by the mirrorless camera users (micro 4/3rds & others)... That 80-200 that you had was likely only a consumer grade lens (most, if not all, 80-200's were consumer grade & it could have been made by any number of manufactures).

Racmanaz Loc: Sunny Tucson!

I miss my Minolta X-700 and Vivitar lenses :(

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

Actually, Minolta was the downfall of most all of the independent Japanese lens makers....When they introduced auto focus cameras on the market, they wanted too large a cut from 3rd party lens makers to share the new lens technology... A few manufactures paid the royalties.... The rest went belly up...

Bugfan Loc: Toronto, Canada

Whenever you buy third party lenses always read the fine print. Often they're incredibly cheap because they have no image stabilizer and they often have no focus motor either. Those that have both are not a lot less expensive, they're simply a little less expensive.

As to brands, Vivitar is not a lens maker I'd recommend. The two top ones that compete well against Nikon and Canon are Sigma and Tamron.

Today perhaps just about any third party lens might make you happy but as you get more sophisticated you'll become more demanding and sensitive to quality and before you know it you're throwing out those lenses in favour of Nikon ones.

I tend to stick with Nikon for my lens needs despite the cost. Still though Sigma is worth looking at and Tamron is too for some lenses.

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

As I said before, Vivitar doesn't make lenses. They are simply a marketer who rebrands lenses bought from independent manufacturers... Vivitar offerings from the very late 80's to the present leave much to be desired, it's true, but many of the older ones from the late 70's, early to mid 80's are perfectly acceptable. True, they don't have auto focus ,nor VR, but price wise, are real bargains as opposed to current offerings...As I said, check out my Flickr stream for examples.... Plus, if the older ones are not so good, why do they fetch the prices they do on the used market ?

KotaKrome

I've owned the Vivitar 70-210 Series 1 Macro Zoom since 1976.
It's always been an incredible, SHARP, lens and VERY well built.
I've also owned the KILLER Vivitar 283 flash and also the 285.
The 283 was HIGHLY prized in it's day. As a young man I was proud to have one. I had to save up quite a while to get it and the lens.
Check out "Vivltar" on Wikipedia.com. The story of the company is fun to read for any photo buff.
There's a list at the end showing which company made many of their lenses and even some links to reviews.

b.dehautdessert

Vivitar made nice stuff a few decades ago, but I wouldn't care to use the modern stuff. Tamron and Sigma were mentioned--I've got some older Tiffens too which were pretty good.

jimq Loc: Cape Cod, MA

wingclui44,

jimq Loc: Cape Cod, MA

wingclui44,

Point well taken. My post assumed OP wanted current lenses. Vivitar is not the company they used to be.

1Georgie Loc: nevada

Thanks everyone for your input...

wingclui44 Loc: CT USA

Happy shopping, good luck!

rocketride Loc: Upstate NY

I loved my Vivitar 135mm f/2.8 in OM mount.

Kiron was Kino Precision Optics. Made lenses under other labels for a few decades. Tried selling under their own Kiron label for a while in the '80s. Went belly-up around 1990.
Have a 28 f/2 and 80-200 f/4.5 which I was fond of back in the day. It's in storage with the vivitar and my other film gear.