I was going to a matinée theatre play and learned
that there was a small museum on the premises. Photography is not allowed in
theatres, but I thought maybe there will be an interesting moment in the
museum.
I decided to take my OM-1 along, and I felt that I should
experiment with a lens I bought almost 3 decades ago and never used. It is a groundbreaking
design of what is called a varifocal lens – it is not a zoom (these are called
parfocal lenses), although it is pull-push (trumpet) like a vintage zoom. It
was designed in 1974 by Opcon Associates using early computer modeling
to have a constant f2.8 across 35-85mm. It was said that it was like having a
series of lenses in one, since every time the “zoom” is used, one needs to
refocus manually.
It is historically important of a lens, but it never
lived to its promise to be sharp, easy to carry or handle. Indeed the 26 oz (722
grams) of steel and glass make my OM-1 nose dive and my neck beg for mercy!
So, I wanted to have it but never found it useful
for street photography.
Here is the Vivitar lens (made by Kino, Japan):
And its massive front made for 72mm filter, just in
case one wants more weight to add to the lens...
Yesterday I was impulsively curious to see what the
lens can (or rather cannot) do.
Being early to the opening of the theatre, I walked
around the “museum” which consisted of four rooms showing eclectic art works
from local artists. I knew I would not shoot the entire 12 or so frames worth
of the ASA 100 Formapan B&W film I had rolled, but I have learned that all
it matters is that one frame you shoot to capture a fleeing instant and it ends
up a “keeper.”
The very first room I entered was supposed to be a
display of costumes, but all I could see was a French bulldog wearing a polka
dot dress looking at me and pulling its tongue!
See the photo atop the page – can you see what I
saw?
If not, here is the cropped view:
Ok, now I needed a photo. I moved around and I could
see the “bulldog face” become a large bow tie and a short necktie with the
changing shade under the dimly lit room. As I was returning to the spot where
the bow tie re-became a dog’s face, I saw a woman in the back of the room. I waited
till she got into my viewfinder given my penchant for street photography. I clicked
keeping the focus on the middle dress, aperture at 35mm, shutter at 1/30th
of a second, hoping I would not shake too badly holding that lens steady.
Verdict:
The lens is like a smooth moving tank with a very soft heart! I do not have
much experience using it (only 4 frames shot) but it can be all soft, all vintage,
all shadows, all unpredictable and all surprising for indoor portraiture. It is
a time capsule (although too big to swallow) where we may rediscover photos our
parents took.
Otherwise, it is not for street photography where I
try to be unnoticed, focus quickly with a camera shutter that does not sound
like a guillotine (forget the Bronica Medium Format camera) and after 2 hours of
walking the streets I do not search for Ibuprofen tablets on my way to the darkroom.
But if you have to use it, take it out with no film
loaded. Walk the crowds, and the odds are that you will meet a lot of new
people who all start with the same sentence:
“What is that torture machine hanging from
your neck?”
September 27, 2026
© Vahé A. Kazandjian, 2026
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