General Information

Serial #

3252405

Part Number

1

Total Parts

6

AKA

N/A

Patents

N/A

General Description

Plastic casing, flash lens; metal electrical connections

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length

12.4 cm

Width

9.2 cm

Height

9.6 cm

Thickness

N/A

Weight

N/A

Diameter

N/A

Volume

N/A

Lexicon

Group

Photography

Category

Still camera accessories

Sub-Category

N/A

Manufacturer

AKA

Vivitar

Country

Japan

State/Province

Unknown

City

Unknown

Context

Country

Canada

State/Province

Ontario

Period

Early 1970s until at least 1980

Canada

This flash unit was purchased by John Corby, former curator of Industrial Technology at NMST. It was purchased in the early 1970s and was used with a Pentacon Praktica Super TL camera (2010.0566.1) by Mr. Corby for his job as curator. This flash was used with the Super TL to photograph most of the images in CSTM's John Corby collection (e.g. Angus Shops, Chesterville Station). According to many amateur photography and collector websites, the Vivitar 283 was often seen by amateurs and professionals as a "workhorse" and was an extremely popular model. Its very similar sister models, the285 and 285hv were even reintroduced by Vivitar in 2007 because they were so popular. According to a few amateur sites, the 283 was introduced in 1972 and had sold three million units by 1976. (Taken directly from worksheet)

Function

Improving lighting conditions while capturing still images.

Technical

This is a Vivitar Auto Thyristor 283 electronic flash unit (serial no. 3252405) and diffuser (Lens / Filter Adapter for Vivitar Model 283). The flash head tilts to 45, 60, 75, and 90 degrees (to the horizon). Its bounce compensator circuit (BCC) provides extra power for the use of a bounce flash technique at 45, 60 and 75 degrees. Its recycle time can be as little as 0.5 seconds owing to the use of a thyristor in the flash cut-off mechanism. The thyristor, a semiconductor device, allowed any energy that remained after a flash discharge to be stored in the capacitor, thus saving energy that would have otherwise been wasted as well as decreasing charging time of the capacitor. Since the thyristor had only begun to be used for this purpose in flash units as of 1972, the Auto Thyristor 283 was one of the earlier models to employ this system. A series of optical and power source accessories were available with the Vivitar 283 system. The flash specifications varied depending on the power source: --- Alkaline Batteries (four 1.5 V AA); 75 flashes in manual mode, up to 800 in automatic. 0.5 to 11 seconds recycling time. --- NiCad Batteries (four 1.5V AA, rechargeable): 45 flashes in manual, up to 750 in automatic. 0.5 to 6 seconds recycling time. --- Vivitar LVP-2 Low Voltage Battery Pack (optional accessory, not included here): up to 600 flashes with four alkaline D cell batteries or up to 100 flashes with four NiCad D cells. 0.5 to 8 seconds recycling time. --- Vivitar NC-3 NiCad Battery pack and Vivitar Charge 15 (optional accessory, not included here): the Charge 15 is used to charge the battery pack within approximately 15 minutes. It can provide up to 50 flashes per charge. 0.5 to 5 seconds recycling time.

Area Notes

Unknown

Details

Markings

On proper front: sticker "CSA/ Vivitar model 283/ Can be used with 1.5V batteries or/ with Vivitar SB-4 A/C Adapter/ Vivitar Canada Ltd/Ltee/ Montreal, Que., Canada"/ Engraved into the plastic below label: "3252405"/ Scratched into the plastic where the head pivots: "C6565-65852-20416"/ "Vivitar/ auto thyristor/ 283"/ On proper right side, where the head pivots: a round window with exposure settings on it/ On the bottom: "MADE IN JAPAN"/ On the back: where the head pivots "0/ BCC/ 45/ 60/ 75/ 90"/ "USE VIVITAR SB-4 POWER SUPPLY ONLY/ Photoflash Equipment/ Lock"/ Inside battery compartment: "USE NC-3/ OR AA PAK"

Missing

Appears complete

Finish

Black plastic with metallic accents

Decoration

N/A