Good Starter Movie Cameras? Anyone Left Who Knows?

[karl_borowski]

I have always enjoyed photography. One branch of photography that I

have often wondered about is cinematography. So when I came across a

couple of used movie cameras at Cameta Camera (www.cameta.com), I was

interested, but I want to know more about their abilities (i.e. sound

recording, super 8) from someone with experience in this field. Here

are the models I came across:

 

Canon Eight Movie Camera Ser.#15438 With Canon 13mmf1.8 And Original

Cap(Solid E++) $10.

 

Elmo 240-S Macro Sound Super 8 Movie Camera Ser.#423452 With 4 To 1

Zoom(Mint-) $19.

 

Early All Metal(2 Tone Brown) Wind Up 8mm Movie Camera With

12/16/24/32

Frames Per Second, Single Frame, 3X(11.5mm-32mm) S- Resonar Zoom And

Original Matching Triggered Pistol Grip And Original Case With

Strap(Solid E++) $29

 

Also, I would like to know if Cameta Camera's reputation is good or

bad. I shall appreciate any help or comments I receive. Thank ye.

[beerbrain_ronny_perry]

You can still buy super 8 and reg 8 film, but at the kodak site there isn`t any magnetic striped super 8, so you couldn`t do single sound system with the camera unless you have the magnetic stripe for audio ,,you would have to use a external sound recorder and slate,and then sync up the footage,where the audio and visual match. If you can find some super 8 film carts with a magnetic stripe you could record the sound as you film.DV video has kinda killed off what was left of super 8,, especially the Canon XL1. I would check out a DV video camera, where you could dump the footage into the computer and edit from there.Tape is cheap and there are no processing fees,and you edit on your computer with a program like Adobe Premier, final cut, or AVID,,,,,I have bought a still camera from Cameta and they are fine.

[karl_borowski]

I definitely want film, not any other format, but thanks for your help. What exactly do you mean with all of that Super 8 sound cart stuff, and will the last camera on the list not take Super 8?

Should I go with 16mm or Super 16 instead? Can I find a 16mm camera for cheap? Are there any 8mm films with sound tracks still made?

Thanx again.

[beerbrain_ronny_perry]

Super 8 and regular 8 are two different film formats, reg 8 is double perfed,,,,sprocket holes... and has half the frame area as super 8 which is single perf, the other side of the super 8 film edge where these isn`t any sprocket holes is where the magentic stripe is , to record sound and picture on one device/camera.Most of the super 8 film now being sold don`t have the mag stripe, so you cant record the sound there without the mag stripe, film makers use what is called double system sound, you have a separate sound recorder, and you have to sync up the sound and picture.The las t camera on your list is 8mm according your description, so super 8 film will not work in that camera.I dont know of any cheap 16mm cameras, a good Bolex goes for a grand or more and a used ARRI SR is about $5,000 without lens, a CP 16 somebody might give it to you to get rid of it.

[glen_johnson]

Of the units you've mentioned, Elmo would probably be the one that has held up the best over time.... but this isn't saying much. I've fooled with a slew of used projectors and 30 year old cameras, and I think you're throwing good money away if you go this route.

 

That said, if you're insistent on film, I would look at 16mm. If your insistent on film, but you can't afford the high price of 16mm processing, then you really need to go back and look at my first paragraph.

 

If your goal is to get good, archival video images, get a good quality mini-DV. After the initial investment, there are no processing costs, and you get instant feedback on what you've captured. If you want to make it look like film, get one of the models that has digital effects to degrade the image so that it will look like film.

[robert_eastman]

Do you have junk/opp/charity shops where you live? These are the best sources of super 8 cameras. Film WILL give you better resolution and colours than DV unless you are willing to spend serious bucks on hardware, and even then super 8 has the advantage IMO. I don't know the reputation of the company you are asking about but I doubt the first or third camera takes super 8. Single 8 film is still available, but a lot harder to find. Do a google search for the elmo. If it has the ability to use silent cartridges it will be of use. Dont worry about sound. I have used a couple of Mini DV cameras (consumer grade) and the inbuilt mikes are next to useless for serious film work. There are heaps of web resources for super8 film making.I suggest you follow up this question at some of the dedicated super8 forums.

[jason_eitelbach3]

For super 8 cameras good buys are Canon 514 xl(c. $20-75) 514xl-s (c.$40-100)814 xl-s (c.$250-600) 1014xl-s (c.$450-100) all of those are great cameras and can be found easily on e-b*y...Nikon R8, R10 Minolta autopak's are good. Nizo 2056's can be good buys....super 8 is a great format to shoot. Very alive and well...as far as cheap 16mm goes you might try to pick up a Canon Scoopic($400-$600) a great MOS camera,not to good for doing sync sound(it can be modified though)b/c it's noisy, but watch out many will need to have old Ni-Cad batteries re-celled ($60-$150)

 

good luck