Super 8 Film Cameras

[Dwig]

If you go with one of the excellent Canon 814 or 1014 models, look for the later "XLS" versions. These use only one set of AA's to power everything. The earlier versions used separate no longer available mercury batteries to power the meter. Avoid the hassle of tracking down and dealing with the substitutes by getting the XLS versions

 

[rolleistef]

"Photography is about recording Truth. And cinema is Truth 24 times per second."

Jean Luc Godard, le Petit Soldat.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBvfdZIJFG8

 

[dll927]

Isn't it about time for somebody to raise the question of WHY somebody wants an 8mm movie camera? How about a 1956 Chevy?

For someone so inclined (I'm not), it would seem that a camcorder would be much easier to deal with. That would eliminate processing, projection, and even finding film.

I have never had the slightest inclination for owning either a movie camera or a camcorder. Just never interested me. I was for eons basically a 35mm slide person, but now I've gone digital, like most of the rest of the crowd.

For those who haven't noticed, who uses Polaroids any more??

 

[snausages]

Never used them, but looks like an interesting vendor:

http://www.pro8mm.com/home.html

Unless you're planning on viewing with a projector or able to get a high quality telecine transfer I wonder about the return on getting a higher end super 8 camera? I've been pretty well served by the utterly basic $40-$60 variety...

 

[sanmich]

If your friend like lifting weight, you could use 16mm for not much more money.
I bought my Canon Scoopic for 300$ off craigslist.
It's heavy, but nice.
And I used to process films at home with decent results (If you thought that processing still 35mm is crazy, try this!!)
Good luck! these are fun and they can produce very interesting footage.

 

[Al Kaplan]

Film just "looks different" than...sound familiar? So why not just shoot the stuff for movies as well as stills.

Someplace around here I still have a Super-8 Nikkorex and a Kodak projector with some spare bulbs.

 

[rxmd]

The obligatory FSU alternative is the Kvarts (Quartz) 1x8S:



Decent zoom lens, still costs next to nothing because it's not overhyped, and Oleksandr Kalynychenko in Kiev could probably sell you a CLA'd one.

And it's all mechanical and spring-driven, so that it doesn't need a battery. Among film cameras for the Super-8 cartridge, this is quite rare. So those of you who choose mechanical Leicas because they work without batteries - get a Quartz. 😎

 

[Sonnar Brian]

I

For those who haven't noticed, who uses Polaroids any more??

I do. Polaroid 180, Polaroid SLR680, and a Polaroid SLR690.

Same basic type that would be using a device as obsolete as a Rangefinder Camera.

 

[cplkao]

It depends on the usage of the Super8 Camera, is the owner very enthusiastic into film making or want to own the gadget for owning it?

The price of the camera can go from a nickel toward 5xx UK Pounds, depend on the desired features, macro, variable frame rate, auto/manual exposure, time-lapse, slow motion all come with a price, and some models won't expose the popular Kodak reversal 64T correctly, have a look at Onsuper8 Cameras and Super8wiki for some ideas and information.

Braun Nizo, Bauer, Canon, Nikon all have very good super8 cameras, Nizo Professional is an all-rounder, with all the mentioned features and eat only AA batteries, price can go from 3xx EUR.

Do you/he want to edit the film analogue way or digital way?or straight projection through super8 projector?

A cartridge of Super8 (50ft) only last 2-3.5 mins depend on frame rate, in UK, cartridge+process+telecine to dvd/dv/files cost 52 UK pounds per 50 feet, or 26 UK pounds for just the film+process.

Personally, the money needed to make a short film on 8mm is very demanding, of course cheaper compare to 16mm/35mm without losing the film feel, but shooting super8 today is like shooting half frame film photography on Olympus Pen in the digital age. I was looking for a Super8 camera recently to film a short, but defeated by the cost of film/process/telecine... thought Film Photgraphy is expensive already... Would suggest to get a DV cam or HD Cam to shoot without worrying about film stock then edit on computer.

For more Super8 info. and shops, have a look at:
Shops:
http://www.super8ireland.com/listofitems.html

http://www.super8camera-shop.com/shop/

Information:
http://www.film.project-consultant.net/index.html

http://www.cinematography.com/index.php?showforum=31

 

[Carlsen Highway]

If your serious about your super 8 film making, then yes, you shoot a project and get it telecine'd. You can usually talk cut price rates at the lab for personal or student projects....then you cut it in the digital world same as everybody else does.
No more mucking with Super 8 splices! (Splicing is an art form, not a craft. I spent a long time perfecting the perfect invisable cement splice.)
I have a large soft spot for Super 8mm, I was a mad 8mm film maker before I made a transition to photography.
I have a 16mm camera and editing viewer/ rewinds and all manner of bits and pieces lying around somewhere. I just remembered that.

Nowadays Super 8mm film making is put in the same box with trainspotters and people that collect plastic bags I suppose. But I notice that Kadak has brought out two new film stocks for it in the last year or so, so the heart still beats...slowly....

But as the last poster says, despite its modest size and quality, the cost of filmstock and processing has relagated it to a niche commercial application....hobbyists and 'artists' cant afford it.

 

[dll927]

Brian -- I thought I read somewhere that Polaroid even stopped making the film. But that may be old age taking its toll, or could it be that the amateur film is no longer made but pro stuff still is?? I would imagine that a few pros still emply Polaroid for testing, etc. ( if it's still available.)

As for the bit about "film just looks different", that sounds like CDs vs. vinyl records. There are always those who don't like the progress of technology.

 

[spyder2000]

I did a lot of S8 for people before video took over the marketplace. I used Canon 1014XLS until I sourced a Beaulieu 5008S. I never went back. The lenses available for the Beaulieu were Schneider (what I had) and Angenieux and either was truly stunning. You think the Canon is sharp? I could not use both cameras at the same event because I could not edit between the two with the difference standing out.

 

[David Murphy]

In cinema work, film has no digital equal. Essentially all serious productions are shot with film if it can be afforded. Sixteen millimeter (or Super 16) is probably the most powerful production media if 35mm is beyond reach. Incidentally I live in an area of Southern California where location shooting happens in my neighborhood almost every day (TV shows, commercials, movies) and they all use film (Super-16 or 35mm)

Isn't it about time for somebody to raise the question of WHY somebody wants an 8mm movie camera? How about a 1956 Chevy?

For someone so inclined (I'm not), it would seem that a camcorder would be much easier to deal with. That would eliminate processing, projection, and even finding film.

I have never had the slightest inclination for owning either a movie camera or a camcorder. Just never interested me. I was for eons basically a 35mm slide person, but now I've gone digital, like most of the rest of the crowd.

For those who haven't noticed, who uses Polaroids any more??

 

[rphenning]

really?^^ they all use film? I don't doubt what you see but I have heard different from my brother in law. He is a DP and says that the only thing he uses anymore is digital, phantoms, REDs, etcs.

 

[David Murphy]

A TV show and high-end commercial were shot on Super-16 at my workplace just recently. They had video taps on the cameras, but it went in the can as film. They are shooting a movie in 35mm just down the street from me right now. The Arri 35 is a common sight on the streets of Hollywood - independent productions I suppose (since the studios seem to use Panavision) - don't know for sure. Video and digital will never equal the quality of film - obsession with electronic technology and low cost are not what matter at the high end. I'm hardly an expert, but I stop and watch when I have time and this is what I see (Pasadena has location shoots almost daily now - the arty types seem to adore this place, or perhaps the permits are cheap, or both - don't know). Looks like great fun too; film making that is.

really?^^ they all use film? I don't doubt what you see but I have heard different from my brother in law. He is a DP and says that the only thing he uses anymore is digital, phantoms, REDs, etcs.

 

[David Murphy]

I've shot a few cartridges with one - not bad - not the most steady frames I've seen, but extremely convenient to use with the mechanical wind. The late model Japanese cameras like Sankyo have a much steadier film gate and better optics - close to 16mm in quality.

The obligatory FSU alternative is the Kvarts (Quartz) 1x8S:



Decent zoom lens, still costs next to nothing because it's not overhyped, and Oleksandr Kalynychenko in Kiev could probably sell you a CLA'd one.

And it's all mechanical and spring-driven, so that it doesn't need a battery. Among film cameras for the Super-8 cartridge, this is quite rare. So those of you who choose mechanical Leicas because they work without batteries - get a Quartz. 😎

 

[Richard G]

I bought a Leicina Super 8 movie camera with a Zoom lens (?6-66) with automatic exposure and paid a lot for it in the early 90s. I used it once or twice a year from when my daughter was three. We would go away to the beach house and I would take a few cartridges of film. The lack of sound allowed me to direct from behind the lens. We have less than 20 priceless gems, such as the bold walk and then run of my daughter along the beach right to the end when she was 3. I read a little and followed Tarkovsky's (of all people to inspire a family movie) advice to stick to long takes and avoid the zoom, or do it manually and very slowly. I tried to sense the mood and only take a movie when all seemed right. The best one was of my daughter, aged 6 or 7, playing with shells and rose petals, organizing them on a table in the courtyard, talking to her younger brother, him circling patiently. Something about the medium contributed to the calm atmosphere. The whirr of the camera taking the movie and the clatter of the projector when watching it are quite magical. Buy one.

 

[MauroSc]

I picked up a Bolex B8 today for $15. Sounds like it needs a little oil but other than that it looks perfect. I can buy the film and process it at Dwayne's so I might order a few reels of Ektachrome when I ship of my next Kodachrome's to be processed.

My new Bolex 16 mm reflex, with a "strange" lens : a 50 summar 🙂
Fantastic dreaming possibilities of taking moving images 🙂

 

[David Murphy]

Double and Super 8 both are still very practical (I've shot both in the recent past - processing from more than one source IS available). Bolex might be the best for double 8 - Nikon, Canon, Nizo, Leica, Beaulieu, Minolta, Russian Kinoflex, Chinon, (and probably some others) all made some very good S8 cameras. Double 8 with a good camera may actually have more stable frame registration than S8 since with S8 the cartridge gets in the way of this. (The old Bolex 8mm projectors render almost studio quality results)

I picked up a Bolex B8 today for $15. Sounds like it needs a little oil but other than that it looks perfect. I can buy the film and process it at Dwayne's so I might order a few reels of Ektachrome when I ship of my next Kodachrome's to be processed.

 

[charjohncarter]

Double and Super 8 both are still very practical (I've shot both in the recent past - processing from more than one source IS available). Bolex might be the best for double 8 - Nikon, Canon, Nizo, Leica, Beaulieu, Minolta, Russian Kinoflex, Chinon, (and probably some others) all made some very good S8 cameras. Double 8 with a good camera may actually have more stable frame registration than S8 since with S8 the cartridge gets in the way of this. (The old Bolex 8mm projectors render almost studio quality results)

I agree with the quality of Double 8. I have a nice Minolta and it doesn't meet my dad's double 8 on the same/similar projector. But I'll continue to use my Minolta.