Nikon Super Zoom-8 question

[Jackson Burke]

Hi, folks. First of all, total noob with regards to all thing Super-8, so this question is going to be embarrassingly basic. I just picked up a Nikon Super Zoom-8 from a friend who owned it as a kid, and it hasn't been used in a while. The film that it came with had been in the camera since the mid-eighties, so that was pretty much unusable, and I'm trying to figure out what kind of new stock I should pick up. The Super Zoom-8 takes what the manual refers to as "Kodapak insta-load cartridges," and the one that was in there was a Kodak Tri-X reversal film 7278, which I understand has since been discontinued. A search of the Kodak site revealed the following films are still available through Kodak:

 

Color Negative:

Kodak Vision2 200T Color Negative Film 7217

Kodak Vision2 500T Color Negative Film 7218

 

Color Reversal:

Kodachrome 40

Ektachrome VNF 7240

 

Black and White:

PLUS-X Reversal Film 7265

Tri-X Reversal Film 7266

 

Will all of these films work with my camera, and if not, which ones? Also, I would like to shoot in color if at all possible. Can anyone offer any recommendations as to which films look best using this particular type of camera? I appreciate any help anyone can give me as I make my first fumbling forays into 1960s technology. Thanks!

[Alessandro Machi]

The film cartridges are notched in a certain way so that the camera knows what the ASA is so in theory your automatic metering will sort of know what is an OK setting (but manual exposure settings tend to be better for steadiness in film image quality)

 

Negative stocks were not available when your camera was made so they can "fool" the automatic meter into an incorrect setting. However, since Negative stocks offer more latitude, it's probably a surviveable mistake even if the camera is kept in the automatic exposure mode for initial f-stop evaluatio. The reason auto exposure is bad is because the f-stop can change in the middle of a shot and unless one is going from a shady area to a bright area (or vice-versa), the change in f-stop is usually visually distracting. (unless it's done as some kind of gimmick or effect).

 

Many people use the auto setting as a guide, then switch to manul exposure for the actual take because the manual mode actually "locks" the meter. Kodachrome 40 is really great outdoor stock.

 

If you shoot with Super-8 negative stocks you will have to transfer it to video to view the image.

 

I think Matt Pacini is shot with the camera you have and I seem to recall he liked the camera, maybe he'll add his two cents.

[Robert Hughes]

Michael Nyberg has a recent web page where he speaks favorably on his newly acquired Nikon Super 8x:

 

http://home.pacbell.net/mnyberg/super8mm/super8_34.html

 

I've never used one, but do own a Nikon R8, the next later model with a similar lens, and have been very pleased with the images shot thru that camera.

 

You will have to find a way to get your light meter to function properly. The Super 8x took 1.35v batteries that are no longer made; the closest match may be the 625a battery which runs 1.5v. You may need to compensate for underexposure using that newer battery set.

 

The Tri-X film in your camera may still be usable. Shoot the rest of it as a camera test. Black & white film is often usable and developable for years after manufacture. The modern Tri-X 7266 is almost the same as 7278, just a little less grainy; they both work fine with modern reversal development.

[Jackson Burke]

Man, this is great. All of this stuff has been really helpful. I do have one more question that's even more simplistic, though. My camera will only take those "insta-paks" that I was talking about, in other words, there's no way to thread the film in if it comes in a roll, like you can on a 16mm camera. Do all of those films that I mentioned in the first post come like that, in a pack, so I can just sort of pop them in the camera and start shooting? Again, thanks for any advice.