I actually wrestled with this zoom telephoto thing over most of the summer.
The 80-200 F 4.5 Nikkor shown here with it's hefty ding in the tube has had me wondering for a while. Was browsing Kijiji last week and found another less blemished
version for cheap.
Denter at right and it's possible replacement at left.
Both are virtually the same lens, and by the serial numbers, roughly 80 lenses apart in terms of manufacture. The newer to me lens will actually focus down to about 5.5 feet, give or take. I had it out for a while at Omand's Creek park today in the new snow.
I still think the series 1 Vivitar 70-210 is sharper, but sharpness ain't everything.
The Vivitar displays some slight bbl distortion throughout it's zoom range. Unless you know what you're looking for, it's pretty hard to find.
Both Nikkors appear distortion free. I am going to have to find my resolution test chart, and run all 3 lenses against it with some slow pan film, just to get this settled in my head.
Incidentally, the latest nikkor is much better at the image edges than the dinger is. That lens with the dent in it may have internal glass damage that is not immediately noticeable.
The 50 I spent on the latest was a bit of a splurge, but I think I can mange to live with it.
I'm also going to have to find a way to chemical print soon. The digital scans from negatives leave a lot to be desired in terms of image quality. Will try asking for high resolution scans off the next roll of tri-x I take in...
Regards,
Doc Sharptail
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"Ain't no Half-Way" -S.R.V.
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