Customer Reviews

Vivitar V3800N Manual SLR Camera with 50mm Lens & Case

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Cosina is a "behind the scenes" Japanese manufacturer of many cameras and lenses, and have made cameras for many branded as high-end and entry level models for decades. If you purchases an SLR, or if you've amassed a collection 3rd party lenses, good chance you have something made by Cosina but didn't know it.

Cosina has been making this camera for Vivitar for the past 15 years that I know of. I know because I purchased this camera's ancestor - pretty much the exact same camera and same lens, 15 years ago around 1990 for around $100 on sale at K-Mart.

I have a digital point and shoot, and I like it. But, I still like film, and there's something to be said for a manual camera, which this is. And, right now there's a TON of high quality used glass in the Pentax K mount that can be had for a song on eBay.

What I like about this camera over digital: 1. produces better images than a point and shoot, and about as good as a $1000 DSLR for less than the cost of the lowest end digital point and shoot; 2. Mine has lasted about 15 years, still going strong. 3. Doesn't need batteries to operate (well the meter does, common watch 1.5's you can get anywhere. They last for years.), 4. doesn't require a computer, photoprinter, or software. I just drop my film off at the local lab, and they're ready in an hour... doubles for about $9.50. No computer required. Give the extra set to whomever, no sitting in front of a PC futzing with images in Photoshop, running out of expensive inks. Been there, done that. Let the "real" photoshop take care of all that.

This camera comes complete with a VERY fast, high-quality 1.7 50mm lens. I got spoiled with this excellent lens because it's about as sharp and as fast a lens as you're likely to find.

So, come join we Luddites who prefer "real" photography with "real" cameras - no EVFs that go dark, no LCDs that wash out, no batteries, SD cards, etc. Let the others have their infernal digital contraptions. Me? I just think manual cameras are TONS more fun, take better pictures, are cheaper, simpler, last longer, require you to think, and require a measure of photographic skill. I also like collecting all those lenses I couldn't afford over the years used now on eBay... also fun.

Will those $600 digicams (that can't shoot beyond iso 200) be around in 2020, like my camera? More likely, they will long since retired to some landfill somewhere.

Think about it.

I love this camera. It is one of the only manual cameras still being manufactured. Digital-electronic monstrosities (which are unbelievably expensive) simply cannot produce images like a simple manual camera with a good 50mm lens.

The lens that comes in this kit is multicoated, which what you want. It is also a K-mount, which means that the camera is compatible with the vast hoard of K-mount lenses out there (probably one of the most popular lens mounts ever made, along with the Canon EF mount). This camera is basically the modern equivalent of the venerable Pentax K-1000, a great camera if ever there was one. It is easy to find all sorts of other lenses, if you ever want them. I could shoot 35mm film with a 50mm lens for the rest of my life and be happy, but it is nice to have options.

I like the fact that I can control the speed and aperture with simple, familiar mechanical controls. It has an actual, physical shutter knob, and an actual, physical aperture ring. These things will never fail, if you take care of them.

I cannot believe the price. A camera like this -- simple, but durable, with a timer and a built-in meter -- would have been out of my price-range when I was starting out. This little camera would have been one of the most advanced cameras available, at that time (and I'm not that old!).

Digital technology is fine for internet applications, for newspaper reporters, maybe even for some wedding and event photographers. But digital images just don't look like film. Digital prints are still basically ink jet print-outs -- the image is squirted onto the paper. Plus, to enlarge them much more than an 8x10, you would need more megapixels than most people can afford.

If you want a good, surprisingly inexpensive camera that makes fantastic images on FILM, without being tied to a computer, then get this camera. Get some Tri-X film. Heck, you might even consider getting a basic darkroom kit and setting up a lab in your bathroom (it's not very expensive -- a lot less than the cost of a digital SLR, for example, even including the camera). That way you can have total control over your prints and make images that people love, not just snapshots that get thrown away.

I've bought over a dozen of these cameras for a high school photography class, and I can tell you it is rare to find a fully manual 35mm SLR camera (though the light meter is battery operated with illuminated green and red plus and minus signs. Old people will remember the manually operated circle that you would manipulate over the meter needle with the aperture ring or shutter speed knob). The camera is simple, the user actually understands what's going on with the settings, and it holds up to student use. It reliably exposes film to a prescribed amount of light, and that's what it's all about.

I intentionally got an all manual film camera to force me to learn the basics of photography. This little beauty performs perfectly with its real pentaprism, DOF preview, and fast 50mm lens.

A brand-new all-mechanical camera is a rare thing these days and I'm glad someone still makes one.

I purchased this camera less than a month ago and have been using non-stop ever since. A few things you might want to know about it is... the Vivitar V3800N is an amazing camera if you use the right film with it. The right film can really make this camera live up to its potential. I've gotten two rolls back - one very dark, grainy, and dull. And another where every picture is outstanding! So you really will want to load this baby with some real film: Fujifilm, Kodak, you know...

You probably should know already that this camera is 100% manual, pretty much nothing about it is automatic. You set your own ISO, shutter speed, aperture, and focus. The hardest part about this is the focusing, and maybe the aperture. The viewfinder is VERY hazy and weird to look through, but I will say that after using it for a while, you get used to it and focus pretty easily. It's hard to know what to set your aperture to, also. You can put batteries in the camera so that when you look through the viewfinder and press the shutter halfway, it will give you a green light indicating that your lighting is correct. I think that this system isn't thought out very well. It depends on your film speed, really. When I am REALLY wanting to get the shot, I will pull out my Nikon DSLR and snap a shot with that, then check the exif info and set the film camera to the same aperture, ISO, and even shutter speed. That has worked very well with me, and when I got the film developed, some of those shots are the very best.

Don't think that this camera will be too hard for you to use. Film is such an amazing, raw experience. Much better than digital if you can imagine! This camera is a learning process - it will seriously strengthen your photographic skills and teach you a lot. I paid an arm and a leg for this camera (don't know if the Amazon price is less... probably) but I must say it is worth it. Makes for a LOT of fun and memories. You can't go wrong! PLUS, everyone has Canons, Nikons, and digital cameras for that matter. Having a Vivitar film camera makes you super cool!

Go out and shoot, I advise that you buy this camera for the experience, fun, and learning! But most of all, the many memories it will make.

Summary:

If you prefer or tolerate used equipment, find and obtain a respectable camera from the 1980s or 1990s. If you prefer new equipment, the Vivitar 3800N is a decent choice, but not as good as the best mechanical SLRs in their heyday.

Background:

I bought this camera in order to re-enter film photography. I had my own darkroom kit since middle school. I love technology and in 1997 bought one of the early consumer-oriented digital cameras (it came with a 2 megabyte compact flash card). After some years of digital photography I decided that there is much to say about film photography. I wanted to leverage my investment in K-mount lenses, and because I prefer brand-new, I bought what seems to be the last of a dying breed: a purely mechanical SLR.

Review:

The Vivitar 3800N is a steal considering how complex the mechanism is. And I'm satisfied because I got my money's worth. But that's the point -- it's not very well built.

Hate to say this folks: this camera is cheap. The serial number is a sticker on the bottom plate (not stamped into the metal). The rubbery material that covers most of the back plate is sure to deteriorate over time (it's sticky). The multiple-exposure button is located right under and in front of the shutter dial, and it's easy to press by mistake. (To be fair, it's a mere distraction, because pressing the multi-exposure button won't due any harm, because the button only works when it's pushed in while the film winder lever is advanced to charge the shutter.) The mirror is hardly damped and makes a big clunk. Engaging the self-timer immediately raises the mirror which stays up until the focal-plane shutter opens and closes.

None of these issues are big deals -- the camera does work. It sports a vertical travel metal focal-plane shutter, and a diagonally split image rangefinder surrounded by a microprism ring area. If the Vivitar 3800N were sold in the 1960s, it would have commanded considerable respect. But film cameras evolved to T-rex levels in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Compared to the mechanical cameras of that era, the Vivitar represents the lingering remnants of a bygone tradition. Perhaps Pentax will consider a limited revival production run of the K1000, KX, or MX. That would be something worth paying a bit over the Vivitar 3800N.

Footnote:

I got the "kit" package, which includes a flash (the worst I've every held in my hands), a multi-exposure toy cap (hmm this could be a conversation piece), a UV filter (nice), batteries for the internal exposure meter (not needed for the camera's operation), two cases (a camera case and a kit case; haven't had a SLR case in 35 years), a roll of monochrome film, and a 50mm f1.7 lens. I got the "kit" package because I was curious. Knowing what I know now, I would've bought only the Vivitar 3800N body if I could have.

The camera that I bought is for my daughter. It is is perfect condition and works fine.

This is a great camera that anyone can learn to use. Everything on it works well; I've had no problems with it whatsoever. There are no regrets with this purchase!

Ace Photo Digital is the type of company that goes on vacation for almost a week, has no intentions of selling you an item, and blows you off until you call them. They used the bait and switch tech on me saying that the package I bought was a mistake of amazons (which it wasn't) and they wouldn't honor my purchase. Very unprofessional company. Asked for a manager to call me, and never did. They do not care about their customers. It was a $150 camera w/ 2 lenses, tripod, flash, and case. They ended up canceling my order when I told them not to. DO NOT ORDER FROM THEM!

I bought this camera for a photography class I was taking (I had to drop the class because of problems with the camera). The first camera Vivitar sent to me had a broken light meter, so I contacted the company to send it back and have it replaced. The company (Ace photo and digital) made me pay the postage to send back a camera that came broken, and then sent me a second camera that once again didn't have a functioning light meter. I would send it back a second time, but I think I'll just buy a light meter that works with the money I would have spent on postage.