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Jeff Adler

When I first saw the last few posts I questioned whether the Vivitar Series 1 28-105 f/2.8-3.8 was made by more than one company. It wasn't. All of them were made by Cosina. I think the idea was that the 35-85, 28-90 and 28-105 Series 1 lenses were made by three different companies. I have all three in various mounts and use them all. As others have mentioned in the past, the 28-90 seems to have the best build quality and is my favorite of the three. I also like the Vivitar 28-85 Variable Focusing f/2.8-3.8 and it's Kiron equivalent. One thing you can say about all of these is that they are very good general purpose lenses. They are not really made for architectural photography or critical macro work. There are other lenses which are better for these purposes. I use these lenses primarily with film cameras so I don't know too well how they work with non-film cameras. If a Series 1 28-105 is in good condition, it is a capable performer. The fact that Cosina made it should not count against it. In my collection of macro lenses I have a number of the Cosina made 100/3.5 versions - you know, the "plastic fantastic." It's light to carry and quite capable.

Jeff Adler

If Camera Barn stayed open longer than it might have because of the wholesale business, Olden stayed open longer for a different reason. They owned the building their store was in. They were criticized for not making the same level of sales per square foot that a tenant renting the space would need. In the late 1980s there was a repair place in Olden's building called Kipling Photo Fix. They overhauled a number of Konica RF cameras for me and made an unusual trade. I found a Konica SLR with a Vivitar 55/2.8 Macro which wouldn't come off. They separated the two and I gave them the camera. The 55/2.8 Vivitar Macro was and is a very nice lens. The Vice President at Canera Barn was Glenn Hale. I was once babysitting his car (Oldsmobile Toronado) near the 341 Madison Avenue store. While I was not paying attention, his car got a ticket. I found out that Glenn Hale knew many bad words. Those of us who were in school and worked there during the summer and holidays referred to the year-round employees as the "lifers." When 47th Street Photo was forced to close, I was at B&H (at their old 17th Street location) and asked someone whether they now had more of the market to themselves. The answer? "We're related to them by marriage and we gave them a lot of merchandise." What about Willoughby's (Willoughby Peerless)? They weren't too friendly, especially to young customers. The one benefit of shopping there if you used Konica equipment was that they were either connected to or owned by Berkey, Konica's importer at the time. Odd Konica items would appear in the store. A number of the employee's were Hungarian and the word nem (no in Hungarian) was often heard. That was the only Hungarian word I knew. I would ask to try on a lens or accessory and they would ask "Are you going to buy it?" The short answer was "Not if I can't even look at it." Olden did eventually get the look of a museum and I liked looking at things even when I wasn't buying. My Konica Autoreflex T2 of 1971, bought at Camera Barn, was used heavily and was wearing out by 1975. I needed a new camera and Camera Barn did not have a T3 in stock. I traded in my T2 and got a new T3 at Olden. At the same time I traded my 57/1.4 Konica Hexanon for the newer 50/1.4.

I have different memories of Camera Barn than Orsetto. I can't say what the store was like in the 1960s because I would have been too young. I first knew the store in 1971. It was not a "dump" fleecing tourists. It did a good business in used equipment and that department was run, at 1272 Broadway, by Henry Albu, the owner's son and Ken Hansen. Ken would later open his own store nearby at 19 West 34th Street. He specialized in Leica and other professional equipment and always had an excellent reputation. He called me to say hello not long before he passed on. I miss him. The discounters, like 47th Street Photo cut many corners. They sold gray market goods without a U.S. warranty and as we would later learn, failed to remit millions of dollars in sales tax. These were the types of places Camera Barn and other legitimate stores had to compete with. Camera Barn had some kind of arrangement with Agfa and would receive large shipments of film, paper and chemicals from them. Agfa made some very high quality materials and Camera Barn had good prices for them. My two brothers also worked there during school summers as did a number of friends. When Ken opened his first store, I asked Henry Albu about it. His response? "Ken is into photography. We sell cameras." Sour grapes. I realize that working in a camera store was not a glamorous occupation. I knew I wouldn't be there when school started up again. I went back after graduating from college in 1979. I worked there while studying for the GMAT at Stanley Kaplan and starting graduate school. The other store employees knew I had a job interview somewhere when I showed up for work wearing a suit. I would eventually start working in insurance, where I have been working for almost 44 years. Camera Barn was not the only store which did not make the transition to mail order or other consumer electronics. Most of the camera stores did not succeed in making that transition. This doesn't mean they weren't trying or that they were doing something wrong. The time for that type of business had simply passed them by. In my area of NJ I am not far from three camera stores: one in Millburn, one in Madison and one in Fairfield. People ask me whether I can still buy film. The answer is yes. Jeff Adler

Rick, Did you mean 150mm f/3.5 Mamiya Sekor C? Jeff Adler

A few things - first, I always like your photos. On a whim a few years ago I got several Nikkormat EL cameras, an ELW and a Nikon EL2. Getting the battery in is a little annoying but when there cameras are in good working order, they are pleasant enough to use. Getting automatic exposure even with very old lenses is nice. What about Albinar lenses and the Albinar name? In my school years in the 1970s I worked during the summers at the Camera Barn stores in New York. The owner of the chain was Fred Albu, also known in some ads as Fred Barn. The Albinar lenses and Alfon flash units were named after Fred Albu. Over time Fred Albu started a wholesale operation called Uniphot-Levitt. Uniphot-Levitt distributed Albinar lenses, Alfon flashes and many other products. They also used the Star D name for some products. They were importers and distributors so they didn't actually manufacture anything, with the possible exception of the tripods which were similar in design to the Tiltall and made, for a time, in the same factory. The Camera Barn chain is long gone, as is Fred Albu. His son Henry worked at the main store at 1272 Broadway and would be in his late 70s now. Memories. Jeff Adler

The 28-80 AF-D Nikkor is a very nice lens if your subject matter fits into its speed range. On an N90S with a roll of Portra 800, it can do a lot. Luis, I hope those photos were not taken in the wild. I would not want to get close enough to either animal in the wild to capture those images with a 105. Jeff Adler

I forgot one thing - Jeff Adler

My latest interesting acquisition is an 85mm f/1.4 Rokinon in Nikon AIS mount. It is the older manual focus model but is chipped. So far I have just handled it on a Nikkormat FT2. It should meter in all modes on my N90S cameras and also meter on my D3300. The price was very reasonable and the lens is interesting. It has internal focusing and the front element does not rotate. The focusing ring moves past infinity, which might help in cold or hot weather. It came with the dedicated bayonet hood. If the weather is good, I will try it out on Thursday.

Did you mean f/2.8-3.8? Jeff Adler

I am a big fan of Vivitar lenses and have mist of them from the early 1970s to the start of the AF age. If I am not mistaken, I have two of the 35-85 lenses. The late Roger Hicks was a fan of this lens and thought it to be capable of professional use if in good condition. Before the AF era, varifocal zoom lenses were not very popular. Two of mine that cone to mind are the 35-100mm f/2.8 Konica Hexanon and the Vivitar 28-85mm f/2.8-3.8 Auto Variable Focusing. The Konica lens is large and very heavy. My example was inherited. The varifocal design was used to allow the constant aperture. It was a very good lens for its time but few were made and they were very expensive. I have examples of the Vivitar 28-85 in many mounts. It is suitable for most subjects with the possible exception of exacting architectural work. I have read that this model was in contention for being a Series 1 lens but was passed over for the 28-90 f/2.8-3.5. I have many of those too. The 28-85 was also sold as a Kiron model. Only the cosmetics are different. As usual, Rick has not only shown the technical details of a piece of equipment but has illustrated them with his very nice compositions. I always look forward to seeing his photos. My latest Vivitar Series 1 purchase was a 200mm f/3 in Konica AR mount. Once the AF era took hold, varifocals became more common because AF systems could adjust for both the varifocal designs and the variable aperture feature. Jeff Adler

If I am not mistaken, I have all of the Celtic versions in every focal length. I have a funny story about a 50mm f/3.5 Celtic Macro. The glass was bad but I had an MD Rokkor-X with good glass but a cracked barrel. My repairman took the glass elements out of the Rokkor and put them into the Celtic. It was a perfect fit. The Celtic needed new rubber on the focusing ring and that's how I remember which Celtic has the Rokkor elements. The funny thing is that the second version of the MC Rokkor-X, the MD Rokkor-X and the MD all have plastic barrels. The Celtic has a metal barrel. Both are very good lenses. When Konica made the Hexar lenses and Nikon made the Series E lenses and Yashica made the Yashikor lenses, no Macro versions were made. Only Minolta, with its Celtic line, made a macro lens. Jeff Adler

I have many SRT cameras and enjoy using them. It was difficult to find an SRT 201 with the split image focusing aid so I had a switch made. The split image focusing screen from the 202 was installed in a 201 and the microprism focusing screen from the 201 was installed in the 202. Am I the only one with a 202 which has a plain microprism focusing screen? I don't know. Jeff Adler

I have many light meters of different kinds but rarely use them. I have some Promaster 2500PK Super cameras. I put on the Promaster 50/1.7 and hang the camera on my neck. It makes a nice light portable light meter. I might use it with a Bronica SQ-A or a Mamiya RB67. The 2500PK Super's meter is reasonably sensitive and accurate and the resulting exposures are good. If I want a narrower view for metering purposes I might put on a 100/2.8 or 135/3.5 lens. Jeff Adler