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Vivitan Vivitan215Owner's ManualGebrauchsan leitu ngManual du proprietaireManual del propietario

is an international Trademark of Vivitar Corporation tSanra lvlon'ca. CA 90406 USA I

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6177 Ptinled in U.S.A. Part No. 3000285Gedruck t in U,S A Beste l ln r 3000285lmDr ime aux U.S.A No. de p idce 3000285lmbreso en U.S.A. P ieza No. 3000285


Before you begin. . .About Your FlashYour new Vivi tar automat ic electronic f lash provides you withthe most convenient and economical way to take f lash pictures.With i ts fast speed (1 12000 to 30,000 of a second), you can"treeze' ' act ion, a l lowing you to capture events on f i lm as theyare real ly happening No fuss, no f igur ing, your new Viv i tar f lashis the accurate, re l iable way to great f lashpictures. . . "automat ical lV."

Getting Acquainted

. . . Caref ully study this Owner's Manual, Keep it with the f lash fora guide when quest ions ar ise.

. Familiarize yourself with your flash. Check over theCalculator Dial and controls.


Shoot a rol l of f i lm Experiment Make some tests Find outhow to use your f lash most ef fect ively.

Description of Controls

@ aattery Compartment Cover

@ s.nrot

@ Snrtter Cord Socket

@ nuto lManuat Setector Switch

@ Catcu la to r D ia l

@ f ndicator L ight

O on-off switch

@ Op"n Flash Button

@ Hrtounting Foot

@ Shut ter Cord


Power SourcesYour f lash operates on two 1.5 volt AA alkal ine batteries as astandard power source. l f you ' l l be us ing your f lash a lo t , youshould consider Nickel Cadmium batteries (NiOads) as analternative. NiCads, in addit ion to being rechargeable, alsoprovide a faster recycl ing t ime There are several brands ofNiCads current ly ava i lab le , a long wi th supplementary charg inguni ts .

CAUTION. When using NlCad batteries, do not f ire your f lashcontinuously for more than 25 t imes or you may damage yourf lash. Wait a few minutes before you resume f ir ing.

Alkaline BatteriesTo prepare your f lash for battery operation-

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Insert the Batteries(A) Slide open the Battery Compartment O(B) lnsert two 1.5v AA alkaline batteries. (Fottow the positioningdiagrams inside the compartment.)

(C) Replace the cover. (See photo "A")

There are some simple procedures to fol low for gett ing the mostout of your f lash and batteries. First, always turn your unit offr ight after you've f inished using i t , and leave the Indicator Light@ glowing. Secondly, when storing your f lash for a period oftime, remove the batteries to prevent damage from batterycorrosion.


When do you replace the batteries? When the Indicator Lightfai ls to glow after 30 seconds or when you can't hear the"whining" sound after the f lash is switched on.

,Frz"Form" the Capacitor("Form" the capacitor once a month to keep your f lash at peakoperati n g eff iciency. )(A) Turn your flash unit on @. (See photo "B")

(B) Allow the lndicator Light @ to reach tull brilliance, then wait70 seconds. Fire the flash by presslng the Open Flash Button@. Repeat procedure 5 times.

(C) Turn the unit off (for the time being), leaving the lndicatorLight glowing.

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The Calculator DialYour f lash has a Calculator Dial @ which enables you toquickly and easi ly f igure correct exposures. Note the redmarking for the automatic sett ing. (See photo "C")

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Set the Calculator Dial@ to the ASA or DIN film speed for the film you're using andnote the corresponding f-stop above the red marking.

EXAMPLE:You're using ASA 100 (DlN 21) t i tm. Thef-stopabove the red marking is f4.

Automatic OperationWith your f lash in the automatic operating posit ion, you can


photograph within the auto operating range of 3 to 15 feet (0.9to 4 .6 m) wi thout changing the f -s top on your lens.

Your f lash has a Sensor @ (see photo "D") wi th a bu i l t - incomputer for automatic operation. The sensor measures thel ight ref lect ing off the subject during the exposure. Be sure thatnoth ing covers or obst ructs the sensor when you ' re us ing yourf lash in the automatrc posit ton.

A'lSlide the Auto/Manual Selector Switch @ tothe right for the Automatic Positioh (See photo "D")

FcSet your camera controls(A) Set your camera lens to the f-stop number above the red

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marking on the Calculator Dial. (lf the marking overlaps two/-stops, set your lens to the intermediate half-stop.) (Seephoto "E")

(B) Set your camera to the correct shutter speed forsynchronization with electronic flash. (Refer to your camera'instructions

for the proper speed.) (See photo "F")

t\oMount your f lash(A) lnsert the Mounting Foot @ into the camera shoe. (Seephoto "G")

(B) Your flash has a built-in hot shoe contact. lf your cameradoes not have a hot shoe, connect the Shutter Cord @ to yourflash and to your camera's "X" synch terminal. (Refer to yourcamera instructions for specific information regarding your

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camera's f/ash sy n ch ro n izati o n. )

7You're ready!Turn your flash unit on @ , wait for the lndicator Light to glowand you're all set to take flash pictures automatically withoutmaking any further sefflngs. (NOTE: Always wait for thelndicator light to reach tull brilliance.)

Manual OperationThere are s i tuat ions which may requi re us ing the "manual "operatrng posit ion For example: ustng your f lash at distancesbeyond the maximum automatic operating range, using aspecif ic f-stop sett ing for depth of f ield control, or speciall ight ing techniques l ike "J i l l - in" and mul t ip le f lash l ight ing.

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Distances Beyond the Maximum Automatic Operating RangeWhat i f you ' re us ing h igher speed f i lms and want to photographat distances beyond the maximum automatic operating range of'15 feet (4.6 m). You can f igure correct exposures for theselonger d is tances by us ing the formula the Calcu la tor Dia lmarkings are based on.

Guide Number f-stop settingFlash-to-subject distance

1-Set the Auto/Manual Selector Swi tch @ to the "manual "( "M") pos i t ion. (See photo "H")

2-F ind the gu ide number for the f i lm you ' re us ing f rom thetable in the Specif icat ions.

3-Find the f lash-to-subject distance. (A quick way with mostcameras is to focus, then check the focus distance scale on thecamera lens. ) (See photo "E")

4-Compute the f -s top us ing the formula. (Round of f to thenearest f-stop.)

5-Set your camera lens.

EXAMPLE:You ' re us ing f i lm wi th an ASA of 64 (DlN 19) . Fromthe table in the Specif icat ions you f ind the guide number is 48(15). The f lash to subject distance is 16 feet (4.9 m). Thisdivides out to 3. You would set vour camera lens to the closeslf -s too which is f2 .8 .

Selective Depth ol Field ControlSuppose you want to use your f lash at an f-stop other thanthose indicated Jor automatic operation. This is especial lyuseful when using a zoom lens because you can takeadvantage of variable focal lengths for "framing" the scenewithout changing the f lash-to-subject distance and therebyaltering the exposure.

1-Set the Auto/Manual Selector Swi tch @ to t f re "manual "( "M") pos i t ion. (See photo "H")

2-Set the Calcu la tor Dia l for the f i lm you ' re us ing. (Seephoto "C")

3-F ind the f -s top you des i re on the d ia l .

4-Set your f lash up at the corresponding f lash-to-subjectdistance

EXAMPLE:You're using ASA 64 f i lm (DlN 19) and want to setyour lens at f4. The corresponding f lash-to-subject distancewould be 12 feet (3 .7 m) .

Final NoteStop in and visi t your Vivitar dealer. He can show youaccessories for your f lash, plus provide you with t ips on gett ingstarted in electronic f lash photography. He's there to help you

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SpecificationsAutomatic OperationOperat ing Range: 3 to '15 f t . (0 .9 to 4 .6 m)Auto f-stop sel

Fr lm speed ASA 25 64 80 1 00 1 25 1 60 200 400 800D t N 1 5 I I 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 2 4 2 7 3 0

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2 3 . 2 3 . 5 4 4 5 5 . 0 5 6 1 1

NOfE: Set your lens to the closest f-stop

Sensor Measur ing Angle : 23"ManualOperat ionGuide numbers (ASAJeet)

ASA f i lm soeed 25 80 100 125 160 200 400 800

Flash gu ide no . 30 48 / o 85 120 17Q

Guide numbers (D l N-meters )

52

Z I

37

241 8

D I N f i l m s o e e d 1 5 1 9 20 21 z z

F l a s h g u i d e n o . 9 1 5 t o

Power Specifications

Power Source No. o f f lashesAverage

Recycle Time(in seconds)

Two 1.5v size AA alkal ine batteriesTwo size AA NiCad batteries

1 5 0 +6 0 +

NOTE: Number of f lashes and recycle t imes in auto modes aredependent on room reflect ivi ty, and type and condit ion of batteries.

General SpecificationsBCPS (Beam Candle Power Seconds): 700

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Flash Duration (approx.):1 12000 to 1/30,000 of a second (auto)1 12000 of a second (manual)

Angles of illumination; 46" horizontal, 34" verticalO pe rati n g P ositio n : VerticalColor Temperature: 6000' KelvinCamera I Flash Synchronization Connections; Hot Shoe,

Shutter CordWeight (without batteries): 41/z oz. (127.6 g)

Dimensions:35/ ru" x1" l ru" x2 '1u" (B4.1mm x 42.9mm x 73mm)Accesso ries I n cl ud ed : Shutter CordAccessories avai lable:SL-2 Remote Flash Trigger, PC-31

Shutter CordSpecif icat ions subject to change without notice

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Bevor Sie lhr Gerdt zur Hand nehmen...Einiges vorweglhr neues automatisches Vivitar Bl i tzgerdt bietet lhnen besteVoraussetzungen fur ge lungene Bi i tzaufnahmen. Mi t se inerenorm schnel len Leuchtze i t (112000 b is 1 /30.000 Sek. ) kanngenau der r icht ige Moment "e ingef roren" werden. OhneManipu la t ion und langes Rechnen is t lh r neuer V iv i tar B l i tz dasrichtige Gerat zu besten Bl i tz-Aufnahmen, unddas. . . automat isch.

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