Author Topic: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?  (Read 17280 times)

mcduff

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8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« on: December 06, 2014, 05:02:50 PM »
This is just a placeholder to see if a chat happens about shooting film on those new fangled moving pictures ;-) As was already said on another thread, why waste a frame a time??

To start: I should shoot again but the first thing I need to do is figure out what to do with a few cartridges I have shot and forgot about. They are kodak bw  that are about ten years old. I wonder if they are even alive? I might try to do it myself in buckets as had been mentioned before. There is a pretty good video online. Has anyone done home processing of it? I would be interested. I would like to try it at least inches as it seems sort of fun.

I might also try niagara custom lab in Toronto as the shipping should be reasonable for this Ontario boy.

The camera I have used it this beautiful Nizo 800. It is so pretty and the films I shot looked awesome.





I do have a further question: I presume this is a shot cartridge,correct?

« Last Edit: December 06, 2014, 05:12:13 PM by mcduff »
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jharr

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #1 on: December 06, 2014, 06:23:08 PM »
Nice camera Don, and yes, the "EXPOSED" marking means the cartridge is spent. I had considered souping some Super 8 in a long tube, but these days it seems like daylight tanks are more available. That's if you are going to make a habit out of it. One time just for fun calls for the bucket method for sure.

I posted this over in the Just Picked Up thread, but it is worth re-posting here. The photos were taken on Kodak CSG in my Speed Graphic.


Beaulieu Diptych by James Harr's Photos, on Flickr

This is probably Ektachrome.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2YpcTqfIBM&list=UUqvhZuWI5mPEZQc_JDC1mmA
« Last Edit: December 06, 2014, 06:33:18 PM by jharr »
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mcduff

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8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #2 on: December 06, 2014, 08:27:17 PM »
James I am such a dope! I did not even read the word "exposed" on the film, as I thought it was just product code haha. I spent a decade working in the literacy 'field' perhaps I should remember to read now and then!

I think I already said this but that camera of yours is insanely beautiful. I really am not a motion film (or video, for that matter) kind of guy. That had alway been secondary to me - I am a dabbler in it. HOWEVER, I find a beautiful motion picture camera can be one of the loveliest cameras, period.
« Last Edit: December 06, 2014, 08:29:06 PM by mcduff »
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mcduff

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #3 on: December 06, 2014, 09:01:46 PM »
OK, hopefully we will start talking about using these lovely little beasts, but all this super8 talk reminded me of the one and only time I used it as a still camera. This was a project for a friend's CD I did about 15 years ago. I think most of that roll was shot by my friend Ron (whom Mike & TinTin have met) when we were at the Stratford (ON) fair (which Mike & TinTin also know). Then I put it together in good old Pshop 3 and Quark Xpress 4 (sigh, I miss Quark). Given that we scanned it on a really really crappy scanner, I thought it turned out quite well. The booklet looked lovely.

I have included 2 copies. The Artist was an introspective sort who wanted really old muted colours, but I also included a copy where the colours were more acurate to the film.

BTW, that is real live DYMO tape as I always thought those fake-DYMO grunge fonts looked like shit.  ::)
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Francois

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #4 on: December 06, 2014, 09:29:51 PM »
On the Dymo tape thing, the fonts definitely look bad.
I did get a film splicer the other day at a charity shop for 50ยข. There was some loose stuff in it so I removed the base and found a bunch of little remnants of movies that were cut with it!

Lately, I've been somewhat attracted by a Lomokino... that's probably a bad sign!
Francois

Film is the vinyl record of photography.

Bryan

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #5 on: December 06, 2014, 09:43:23 PM »
Wow, some very nice cameras, Both the Nizo and Beaulieu are top of the line.  I shoot both Regular 8mm and Super 8 for several reasons.  One reason is the same as why I went back to shooting film in still cameras, digital just didn't get me excited about shooting or viewing the images.  Another reason is tradition, all my families home movies are on Regular 8mm going back to my childhood.  The same goes for my wife except hers are on Super 8.  The best reason is actually watching the movies.  It's a family event when we get out a projector and sit down to watch the movies together.  It's kind of like listening to vinyl records, you're more engaged in the whole process. 

I much prefer to shoot Regular 8mm but there are situations where Super 8 is better.  I love the old clockwork cameras, the mechanics of them, the operation and the reliability.  It's amazing how well built Regular 8mm cameras are, they will still be running way beyond any plastic Super 8 camera.  Usually the only repair needed is to clean out hardened grease, then they run like new.  Another reason I prefer Regular 8mm is the projectors, they are beautiful machines and were built like tanks, they will run forever as well. 

There are situations that I prefer to shoot Super 8 because the cameras have one thing that most Regular 8mm cameras don't, automatic metering.  I'll take them on rafting trips, hiking, anywhere I need to shoot from the hip and don't have time to set up the shot. 

My Nizo Heliomatic

Nizo Heliomatic 8mm by bac1967, on Flickr

My Beaulieu MR8 Reflex

Beaulieu MR8 Reflex Control by bac1967, on Flickr

My favorite 8mm cameras are Bolex.  For Regular 8mm they are the best built and most reliable plus they have some of the best Kern Paillard lenses.  I'm embarrassed to say how many I own, I've been collecting them for a long time.  I have the following basic models as well as variations of some: C8, B8, D8, P1, P2, K1, H8T and H8 Rex 4.  In super 8 I have the 155 Macrozoom and the 160 Macrozoom.  A great web site for Bolex cameras: http://www.bolexcollector.com

My Bolex D8L

Bolex D8L by bac1967, on Flickr

It should be obvious I have a preference for metal cameras over plastic, the same goes for projectors.   I prefer Bolex Projectors as well but also own a few good American models.  Another reason I prefer Regular 8mm over Super 8 is the projectors, they are very well built and many don't have auto feed mechanisms that tend to eat film. 

An American made Keystone K109-D

Keystone K109-D 8mm Projector by bac1967, on Flickr

jharr

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #6 on: December 06, 2014, 10:34:01 PM »
Once I got the Beaulieu, I never really paid much attention to other super 8 cameras. The 4008 ZMII has some nice features like a frame counter and rewind knob that allows you to do cross fades in the camera. The gears that drive the zoom are a little out of alignment, so controlling that during shooting is difficult, but my style is more 'home movie' than 'cinematorgraphy', so fast zooms and pans are par for the course. If I project big enough, I can sometimes make my audience motion sick in my livingroom!  :-\
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mcduff

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #7 on: December 06, 2014, 11:03:50 PM »
Bryan, that bolex is really sweet looking. I am glad we have a few shooters here as my experiences are pretty minimal. Only a handful of rolls but I want to shoot some more.

I also have our family 8mm camera, a Cinemax-8e Auto Zoom, but living that last half century ignored and poorly stored has made not been easy on it. I think I want to (re)start with the super8 but maybe later I will get some tips from you about getting the old family camera running for at least one roll.  This image is just off the web...



I understand the point about 8mm projectors. The super8 projector I have does not look as tank-like as that lovely 8mm one you have.

James, speaking of fancy in-camera stuff, I did do a few cool things with the Nizo, it can do cross fades (which is a cool and slightly complex operation) which turn out nice, and it has slow-mo. I remember shooting a cart almost 100% in slow-mo at 54 frames/sec (instead of 18?) and I could feel the $$ flying through the camera haha. In the other direction is can go down to one frame per minute which would be an astounding 60 hours of recording (Wikipedia claims there are 3600 frames in a cart).

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AJShepherd

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #8 on: December 07, 2014, 01:03:47 AM »
When I were a lad (cue Dvorak's "New World" Symphony) I always fancied shooting cine, but couldn't really afford it.

Stuff like this makes me think I should look into giving it a go. Mind you, I think I need to get a better job first...!

Bryan

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #9 on: December 07, 2014, 07:27:32 AM »
Once I got the Beaulieu, I never really paid much attention to other super 8 cameras. The 4008 ZMII has some nice features like a frame counter and rewind knob that allows you to do cross fades in the camera. The gears that drive the zoom are a little out of alignment, so controlling that during shooting is difficult, but my style is more 'home movie' than 'cinematorgraphy', so fast zooms and pans are par for the course. If I project big enough, I can sometimes make my audience motion sick in my livingroom!  :-\

Jharr, I shoot "home movie" style as well but I do strive to at least get well metered shots.  My wife always complains when I pan too fast, like Mcduff said I see dollar signs when that film is speeding through the camera and I'm trying to do a slow pan.  Several of my Bolex Regular 8mm cameras can do fades but only the H8 Rex 4 does them well.  That device that's mounted to the side is called a Rexofader and it does a 32 frame fade.  You have to release the drive clutch and manually rewind the film with a small crank that mounts to the side.  It's fairly complicated, I have to read the instructions every time I do it.


Bolex Paillard H8 Rex 4 by bac1967, on Flickr

Mcduff, does that Cinemax 8E allow for manual metering?  If not a dead selenium meter will make it useless.  That's one reason I prefer the Cameras that take D-mount lenses like the Bolex D8L and the Beaulieu I have pictured above, they may have a built-in meter but the iris is manually controlled on the lens.  I rarely trust the built-in meters though I do have a few that I have determined are in good working order.  The lens on my H8 Rex 4 above can be operated manually or automatic.  I sent it to a guy in The UK who cleaned and serviced it to a like new condition, it works flawlessly now. 
« Last Edit: December 07, 2014, 07:30:06 AM by BAC1967 »

Chalky

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #10 on: December 07, 2014, 09:26:06 AM »
wow lots of lovely cameras.

I shot my friends wedding on super8 and ektachrome, shortly before it was discontinued, it cost lots so was their wedding present... but nothing beats seeing super8 projected against your wall for the first time.

If anyone wants to give it a go I have an old cheap chinon camera I can donate to the cause. There are still a few places making and processing super8, mainly black and white, but excited to see what the ferrania company comes up with.

it's expensive so I rarely do it, but it's good for me for short planned projects. you should try it for projecting it alone :-)

Francois

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #11 on: December 07, 2014, 01:47:38 PM »
There's got to be a way to do this cheaply...
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mcduff

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #12 on: December 07, 2014, 03:38:23 PM »
Bryan I don't think think the Cinemax can set the light metre manually but I should confirm that. What I know is wrong is that the zoom does not work (either manually or via the buttons), but that is not the end of the world. Although if I remember our family films, overuse of the zoom was a hallmark haha.
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mcduff

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #13 on: December 07, 2014, 03:41:06 PM »
A couple of questions for the shooters:

1) where r u buying film and what do you consider a fair price?

2) where r u processing and what is a reasonable price? I  most interested in bw.

3) OK this question is one that should draw the ire from purists, but any digitization experiences?
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jharr

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #14 on: December 07, 2014, 06:10:09 PM »
The clip I posted has obviously been digitized. I went the 'cheap' route and had it telecined. I am not happy with the results and when the bankroll allows, I will probably have them all properly scanned. Of course a flatbed will do for pulling stills. Here is my dad and my son about 17 years ago. You can see that the image circle just barely covers the film area. I have a hard time focusing with the Beaulieu.

Dad & Jacob by James Harr's Photos, on Flickr
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Bryan

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #15 on: December 07, 2014, 06:24:31 PM »
A couple of questions for the shooters:

1) where r u buying film and what do you consider a fair price?

2) where r u processing and what is a reasonable price? I  most interested in bw.

3) OK this question is one that should draw the ire from purists, but any digitization experiences?

I used to consider $12 to $15 per roll or cartridge a fair price but when Kodak stopped making Ektachrome the price started going way up.  Since you are most interested in black and white there are still affordable options available.  I usually buy from John Schwind at International Film Brokers in California.  I'm not sure if his web site is up to date but he has good prices.  He has been largely responsible for keeping Regular 8mm film alive, many places sell his re-branded film.  He also sell Super 8 film.  Call or email him if you want something, his web site is not always up to date.

http://www.buy8mmfilm.com/index.html

Dwayne's, B&H Photo, Amazon all sell film when they have it.  Dwayne's Photo in Parsons, Kansas also processes, that's where I've been sending my film lately.

http://www.dwaynesphoto.com

Pro8mm sells rebranded film and I think they include processing.

http://www.pro8mm.com/color-negative-super-8-film-stocks.php

Spectra Film And Video in California sells and processes film.  I have never used them but I have heard good things about the quality of their processing.

http://www.spectrafilmandvideo.com/Film.html

Wittner in Germany sell film, they have equipment to cut and perforate their own from raw stock.  Some of the re-branded stock you see being sold elsewhere is likely from them.

http://www.wittner-kinotechnik.de

I have not digitized any film yet, I prefer to watch it on the projector.  My wife just dropped off several hundred feet to have it digitized.  The film belongs to a friend but there is a lot of footage of her and her parents.  Many of the places that process film will digitize it.  I think my wife is paying $0.33 per foot for an HD scan.  You can get a low def scan for a lot cheaper but I have heard the high def scans are quite good.  It can get expensive if you have a lot of film.  My father digitized his film at Costco (low def) for $0.11/foot but the quality is poor.  I think Costco send the film to Yes Video, I don't recommend them.  You can buy a pretty cool Retro 8 scanner from MovieStuff for $2995 if you plan on scanning a lot.  If I wanted to scan all my film it would be cheaper to buy a Retro 8 than paying someone else $0.33/foot.

http://www.moviestuff.tv/moviestuff_home.html

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #16 on: December 07, 2014, 07:01:37 PM »
It's probably a lot easier to telecine the film yourself by modifying a projector to extract the frames. There's not that many ways to do this. There's the frame by frame grabbing method using software designed for animation. This gives the best results but is also a real pain in a way. I also read that there's a way to do this using a flatbed... now this is said to give the best quality but is in my way even worse. Then, there's a program I found called Cine Extractor (http://cinextractor.blogspot.ca/p/documentation.html) that looks quite promising. It's an AVIsynth script so it's easy to use. The way it works is that you first modify an old projector so the the shutter is disabled on the open position. Then, you use a regular hi-def camera to capture the film rolling at its slowest speed. Take the resulting file and pass it through the script. It detects when the image is still and removes the moving frames automatically so that you end-up with just the animation... pretty smart.

You can even do better than they describe by heavily modifying the projector by changing the bulb, replacing the condensers for ground glass and either using a USB microscope to capture the film (or I heard that placing a condenser lens in front of the lens will allow to visually see the frames so you can film them).
Francois

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mcduff

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #17 on: December 07, 2014, 07:05:23 PM »
Thanks a lot for the info, Bryan and James. I am going to first start by seeing what is on the cartridges that i have shot a long time ago. The pricing info is good as it will let me know what to look for in Canada.

While I like shooting still images in the winter, I probably will not shoot any motion picture film until the warmer weather comes. 99% of my childhood memories of the film are summertime activities, so those are probably what I will start with! I know James does not have this 'problem' where he lives, and to a lesser extent Bryan. But I do not think I will restart my motion picture career in the cold dark ontario winter!*

*Disclaimer, I LOVE winter, but I probably shoot more in the other seasons.
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mcduff

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #18 on: December 07, 2014, 07:06:38 PM »
That might be a fun winter project, Francois!


A further point added: That is fucking insane Francois!!! I gotta try that as it just sounds so cool. Some poor garage-sale projector may get murdered in the process, haha
« Last Edit: December 07, 2014, 07:08:27 PM by mcduff »
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #19 on: December 07, 2014, 07:13:12 PM »
I went looking for some of my cameras and found half of them.
My grandpa's Bolex is actually an L8 with the Yvar 25mm lens. Really beautiful and simple camera that was manufactured in 1952 and still runs like clockwork.
Then, there's my mystery Bolleyflex Super-8... and a real mystery it is! All I know is that it was manufactured in Japan. There's absolutely no information nowhere on either the camera or its manufacturer. All I know is that it's a silent super-8 camera that runs three speeds (12-18-32 fps), has an 8.5 - 42.8mm lens that opens at f/1.8, mattery check, remote plug, motorized/manual zoom, diopter adjustment on the eyepiece, auto/manual exposure button and a switch for normal/s.frame operation (which I guess is for single frame animation). It's also got a film counter, shutter lock and runs on four AA batteries...

As for the projector, I have one in the garden shed waiting for such treatment... :)
Francois

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #20 on: December 07, 2014, 07:30:58 PM »
I prefer to shoot color film (still and motion) in bright sunlight.  I do shoot a bit around Christmas every year with flood lights. 

Francois, the do-it-yourself telecine is by far the cheapest way but the quality is rarely very good.  The best way is frame by frame but without the proper equipment that can be very time consuming.  It's hard to get a projector at the exact speed and then with some projectors the speed isn't consistant. 

The Bolex L8 was one of the first 8mm cameras they produced (starting in 1942).  It has an odd sized mount that you need an adapter for if you want to use standard D-mount lenses.  You may have that adapter on your camera if your grandfather put a D-mount lens on it.  There are some good tutorials online that show how to lube the Bolex cameras but I'm not sure if the L8 is different than the others.  If it sounds like it's running at a constant speed it's probably ok.  When the grease gets hard you can hear the speed changing while it runs.  If you store the camera for a long time make sure it's not wound up, run it until it stops, that will preserve the spring. 

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #21 on: December 07, 2014, 08:59:22 PM »
Francois, the do-it-yourself telecine is by far the cheapest way but the quality is rarely very good.  The best way is frame by frame but without the proper equipment that can be very time consuming.  It's hard to get a projector at the exact speed and then with some projectors the speed isn't consistant. 
I know, but that's where a bit of engineering comes into play.
I've seen movies where people didn't know that they had to try and match the speed of the projector to the speed of the camera and that is usually the worst results.
I've seen movies where people tried to match the speed of the projector to the camera, that's a bit better.
I've also seen projectors that were heavily modified and that's the only solution for good results.
On the mods that I've seen, there's:
-the bulb replacement
-addition of a speed controller on the motor to make it run really slow
-addition of a switch on the film transport or on the shutter to trigger the frame capture (made using an old mouse as the computer link)
-replacement of the lens by a USB microscope... there's even one specially designed just for that
-modification of the lens to allow direct photography of the film
-removal of the projector's shutter for high-def recording

Once you do something like that, you end-up with a projector that will do from 2 to 8 fps, so recording is possible.
It might look a bit like Frankenstein's monster but it works.
Francois

Film is the vinyl record of photography.

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #22 on: December 08, 2014, 06:50:43 AM »
I've never heard of the USB microscope method, that sounds interesting.  Basically what you are describing is what the Retro 8 scanner does.  It seems like a device to do this would be quite simple, just photograph the film, advance the film and repeat, then string all the shots into a movie.  I just haven't had the motivation to pursue it since I prefer to project my film but I have given it some thought.  There have been many threads discussing do-it-yourself telecine on the Filmshooting forum. 

http://www.filmshooting.com/scripts/forum/viewforum.php?f=1

Roger, the guy from MovieStuff that invented the Retro 8 scanner, is active on the Filmshooting forum.  That forum is more about shooting film, a great one for discussions on projecting film is the 8mm Forum.  There are people on there that shoot film but most of the discussions are about collecting 8mm commercial prints and projecting.

http://8mmforum.film-tech.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi

Those two forums and this one are the only ones I'm active in, all small groups with great people.

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #23 on: December 09, 2014, 09:44:48 PM »
I went through my stuff and finally found my other Super-8 camera!

This one's an oddity too. It's a Sekonic Copal Eye 300. It has a motorized zoom that can't be hand operated, single speed, battery check, a diopter adjustment and that's pretty much it.

Oh, and it also has some of the strangest ergonomics in the world!
Francois

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #24 on: December 09, 2014, 11:42:24 PM »
Francois, it looks like the Werra of super 8!
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #25 on: December 10, 2014, 12:40:44 PM »
Francois that is cool! I am not sure why but a lot of these cameras seem so futuristic looking (or at these their era's notion of what the future will be like). Most of thm look like they could be props in a 60's sci do film.
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #26 on: December 10, 2014, 03:30:42 PM »
I don't know if I'm the only one but I noticed that the older space age designs were a lot more futuristic than today's high tech?

I know I could very easily imagine this camera being used by Nasa on the Gemini flights. And since I always loved space age stuff, when I saw it it was love at first sight! All 2$ worth of love   ;D
Francois

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #27 on: December 10, 2014, 06:10:33 PM »
Quote
I know I could very easily imagine this camera being used by Nasa on the Gemini flights. And since I always loved space age stuff, when I saw it it was love at first sight! All 2$ worth of love

I'd totally buy it if I saw it at a charity shop! But I think it looks more like an Euro space age device. Maybe something out of this movie:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ehxsq1HxTI4

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #28 on: December 10, 2014, 06:15:27 PM »
Francois, I have a L8 as well. Gorgeous little camera.

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #29 on: December 10, 2014, 07:08:30 PM »
It's actually good ergonomic design.  You'd hold it with your wrist straight and your elbow braced against your side--in theory it would give you much steadier shots that the standard pistol-grip design.  (Simultaneous posting edit:  I was referring to the Copal not the L8.)

I had a nice little D8L; sold it this summer to somebody in China for $200!
« Last Edit: December 10, 2014, 07:11:23 PM by Terry »

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #30 on: December 10, 2014, 08:24:47 PM »
Very cool looking camera Francois, I wouldn't pass it up for that price.  One of my favorite cameras looks like a Ray gun, the Bolex 160 model.  I don't take it through airport security and the way police are these days I wouldn't want one to see me with it.  This link has a picture of it.

http://www.bolexcollector.com/cameras/160.html
« Last Edit: December 10, 2014, 08:29:05 PM by BAC1967 »

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #31 on: December 10, 2014, 08:54:04 PM »
Definitely Ray Gun design going on with this one!

Mike: Are you sure this movie you're pointing to wasn't part of Mystery Science Theater 3000 ?  ;D
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #32 on: December 10, 2014, 10:34:39 PM »
Without getting us more distracted than we are haha, I wonder if they were so futuristic as the mainstream use of home movie cameras was a post war thing (and therefor tied up in the "future is now" excitement) compared to still motion photography which may have been viewed more old fashioned by then?
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #33 on: December 10, 2014, 11:03:40 PM »
I don't know...
All I know is that the Sekonic is said to be something of the 1970's... but nobody knows which part of the 70's.
My guess is it must have been pretty early, possibly earlier than. If it had been mid-70's, there would have been fake wood paneling on it for sure!

I just checked and Super-8 was invented by Kodak and sold starting in 1965.

Fuji had their own competing format called Single-8.
There was also Double Super-8 which was 16mm film (with Super-8 perfs) in a cartridge that was run twice through the camera (once in both directions) just like Double-8.
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #34 on: December 10, 2014, 11:39:58 PM »
Though 8mm film got its start in the 1930's it really didn't go mainstream until post war.  There was probably a marketing motivation to make the most futuristic camera at that time when the space race was starting.  Then the Japanese manufacturers got into the game with that new space age material, plastic.  In my opinion that's when quality took a hit but it did make the format accessible to more people.  If you look at that Bollex Collector site I linked to above the person that made the site stops listing camera and projector models when they sent manufacturing from Switzerland to Japan.  That's when they started making cheap plastic stuff.  Bolex was also late getting into the Super 8 market which put them behind other manufacturers. 

Francois, your camera looks like a 1960's model model to me.  Fuji Single 8 was sold in a cartridge which pretty much killed the format when Fuji discontinued it.  Some people reload the carts.  I don't think Kodak ever made Single 8 carts.  Double Super 8 comes on spools but it's harder to get because not many people have cameras for it.  There was a version of the Bolex H8 like the one I have pictured above that was modified to take Double Super 8.  The idea was a camera like that would give you better frame registration and look more professional.  Plus you could use 25', 50' and 100' spools. 

Regular 8mm was sold in cartridges but it wasn't as popular as spools. You had to flip the cartridge to shoot the other side.  I have a camera, I think it's a Sekonik, that allows you to flip the entire film chamber without taking the film out, it's a pretty amazing bit of mechanical engineering.  The camera automatically stops at 25' when you have to flip it.  That eliminated the light leaks you see on a lot of Regular 8mm film that happens when you flip the spool.  I usually do all my film loading in a changing bag to eliminate that.  Some people like the light leaks. 

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #35 on: December 10, 2014, 11:52:15 PM »
I just checked Freestyle and they still carry Double Super-8...

Too bad cine film is so expensive...
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #36 on: December 11, 2014, 01:33:13 AM »
Quote
One of my favorite cameras looks like a Ray gun
Hilarious, I bought one for the very same reason. I wonder if I still have it...

Quote
pointing to wasn't part of Mystery Science Theater 3000
Ha - I don't think so but, believe or not, it is part of series of 4 films and I think one of the four did appear on MST3K. I forget which though but it wasn't this one as this one was awesome! Franco Nero is in for goodness sake and I think the bad guys were brains under glass!

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #37 on: December 11, 2014, 01:57:04 PM »
You just got to love B rated movies  :)
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #38 on: August 05, 2015, 05:54:16 PM »
This seems to be worth reviving since there is 8mm discussion happening over on the just acquired thread. Anyone got anything new to show?
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #39 on: August 05, 2015, 08:26:52 PM »
Not so far but my favorite antique shop has had a ton of 8mm gear lately...
And some of the cameras are just beautiful!
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #40 on: August 05, 2015, 09:38:45 PM »
I just finished shooting a cart of Super 8 Kodak Ektachrome 100D, just sent it to the lab on Monday.  I used two cameras, most was shot in a Konica Compact 8.  It's a simple compact point and shoot that I loaded before leaving town so my wife could shoot some with it.  She only shot 9 feet.  I shot a little more on it then moved the cart to a Canon Auto Zoom 518 to shoot an air show using the zoom lens.  I'm actually getting the film transferred to digital, something I don't usually do.  If anything comes out good I'll share it.  My wife wants to use the Konica to shoot at her friends wedding this weekend, that will leave me with only one more cart of Super 8 Ektachrome  :'(.  I still have a few hundred feet of Ektachrome in Regular 8mm so I'm going to load up my Nizo Heliomatic 8 Focovario for some summer footage. 

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #42 on: August 06, 2015, 04:50:40 PM »
I went through my stuff and finally found my other Super-8 camera!

This one's an oddity too. It's a Sekonic Copal Eye 300. It has a motorized zoom that can't be hand operated, single speed, battery check, a diopter adjustment and that's pretty much it.

Oh, and it also has some of the strangest ergonomics in the world!

Interesting.  How old is that?  Looks like a modern CCTV camera.

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #43 on: August 06, 2015, 09:25:33 PM »
It's actually pretty old. My guess would be early 1970's since this thing is all metal.
Here's the full specs http://www.super8data.com/database/cameras_list/cameras_copal/copal_sekonic300.htm

Actually a lot of information about various movie cameras on that site... http://www.super8data.com/
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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #44 on: August 11, 2015, 04:48:37 AM »
Here are a few short clips I shot on Kodak Ektachrome 100D over the last few weeks.  The first was shot with a Konica Compact 8 camera.  It's a very basic camera with a fixed focus/fixed focal length lens but it's very compact.  We live very close to a float plane airport on Lake Washington.  My wife and a few of her co-workers decided to commute by sea plane since they work a few blocks from where the planes land on Lake Union in Seattle.  The flight was 7 minutes and cost $20 each since it was off peak time.

! No longer available

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAnO7mAkyRk

This one was the Seafair Air Show on Lake Washington a few weeks ago.  This was shot on the same cartridge of film as the above clip using a Canon Auto Zoom 518 camera.  I used this camera because it has a powerful zoom lens, the down side is the shake since I shot it handheld. 

! No longer available

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4pV8sONcuE

The digital transfer is not the best quality, the colors and picture quality look much better on the projector. 

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Re: 8/Super8 etc. Anyone wanna chat about it?
« Reply #45 on: August 14, 2015, 05:39:36 AM »
8mm is so cool. Thanks for sharing these Bryan. I'll have to look through my telecin'd movies and see if there is anything worth posting.
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