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shoot Super-8 using gear like this


Andries Molenaar

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Who needs a new Kodak (or Logmar)

if you can shoot Super-8 using gear like this:

 

We really should focus on keeping those little marvels running instead of introducing new useless junk. But capitalist/industrialist societies have to make us believe we always need new things to make profits. They made us all believe newer always equals better.

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Pro8mm modified Pro814 Canon 814 AZ.

 

Thanks for the identification.

 

I posted because the striking composition of the image and the role of the classic camera there. It also brings forward the advantage of the past topmodels from Canon, Nikon et cetera. The advantages of Super-8. Convenience with top quality optics. Only image stability is somewhat less when shooting without tripod or shoulder pod :)

Edited by Andries Molenaar
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We really should focus on keeping those little marvels running instead of introducing new useless junk. But capitalist/industrialist societies have to make us believe we always need new things to make profits. They made us all believe newer always equals better.

The youngest of these cameras is 30 years old now so they are all on borrowed time. The new ones are hardly mass-market products but they fulfil a requirement for a camera engineered to professional standards which isn't so old that the electronics are deteriorating and the drives perishing.

Maybe you should start a new thread for this sort of stuff.

Or preferably a new website.

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I have the same Canon camera as pictured, it's a nice camera and even has 12fps! Yay!

 

Mine was in great condition except someone had left batteries in it. It took a couple of days to get them out again and even longer to clean the corroded terminal to get it going. I have to tape the base on now but it works great other than that, lovely camera!

 

The new Kodak camera is going to be crystal sync and new tho but I bought this Canon for £25 with a nice flight case so...

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The youngest of these cameras is 30 years old now so they are all on borrowed time. The new ones are hardly mass-market products but they fulfil a requirement for a camera engineered to professional standards which isn't so old that the electronics are deteriorating and the drives perishing.

Maybe you should start a new thread for this sort of stuff.

Or preferably a new website.

 

The Pro8 versions of these cameras are serviced and upgraded to Max8.

 

It's surprising the amount of Super8 cameras that are working or can be got going again in my experience!

People have been going on about them being too old as long as I've been shooting them which is over 10 years now.

There are a lot of cameras with issues out there but what do you want for the money! They cost almost nothing and some of them are still working nicely.

 

Freya

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The Pro8 versions of these cameras are serviced and upgraded to Max8.

 

It's surprising the amount of Super8 cameras that are working or can be got going again in my experience!

People have been going on about them being too old as long as I've been shooting them which is over 10 years now.

There are a lot of cameras with issues out there but what do you want for the money! They cost almost nothing and some of them are still working nicely.

 

Freya

 

 

Pro8mm doesn't modify these cameras to Max8 anymore as they had to many issues and they couldn't do it properly. They were never able to recenter the optics or reframe the viewfinder like they do with the other cameras they modify. It was always just a widened gate and nothing more. They stopped doing it all together a few years ago.

 

As much as I wish these old cameras could run forever, parts availability and knowledge of their assembly are major issues. In fact, once Pro8mm is gone (some day) who is there out there that can completely dissemble and put back together all the major Canons like this 814, the 1014, the XL-s models and the 514 (their Rhonda Cam). Having nice new hardware with renewable parts will be a godsend.

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Pro8mm doesn't modify these cameras to Max8 anymore as they had to many issues and they couldn't do it properly. They were never able to recenter the optics or reframe the viewfinder like they do with the other cameras they modify. It was always just a widened gate and nothing more. They stopped doing it all together a few years ago.

 

As much as I wish these old cameras could run forever, parts availability and knowledge of their assembly are major issues. In fact, once Pro8mm is gone (some day) who is there out there that can completely dissemble and put back together all the major Canons like this 814, the 1014, the XL-s models and the 514 (their Rhonda Cam). Having nice new hardware with renewable parts will be a godsend.

 

True that they don't convert to Max8 anymore but they still seem to sell them and service them:

 

http://www.pro8mm.com/Merchant5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=01&Product_Code=AR814_PRO814&Category_Code=Canon814

 

The Rhonda cam is a modified Canon 310XL not a 514.

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True that they don't convert to Max8 anymore but they still seem to sell them and service them:

 

http://www.pro8mm.com/Merchant5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=01&Product_Code=AR814_PRO814&Category_Code=Canon814

 

The Rhonda cam is a modified Canon 310XL not a 514.

Do they really take these Rhonda cams apart and refurbish them? I was under the impression it was merely finding good running cameras and fixing funny leatherettes to these. Apparently there is an audience for these 5 dollar cameras at 300-400.

 

Seems the website pro8mm is not working at the moment... 11:23 MET 10 3 2016

Edited by Andries Molenaar
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Do they really take these Rhonda cams apart and refurbish them? I was under the impression it was merely finding good running cameras and fixing funny leatherettes to these. Apparently there is an audience for these 5 dollar cameras at 300-400.

 

Seems the website pro8mm is not working at the moment... 11:23 MET 10 3 2016

 

I suspect the funny leatherettes are due to the fact they have to take the original leatherettes off to get inside.

At least some of these cameras have a great new feature which is 9fps! This is a lot more useful than 18fps as you can triple the frames to get 27fps which is then only a slight slowdown to 25 or 24fps. This then avoids all the weird cadence issues you get at 18fps although obviously you get increased motion blur.

 

The other big advantage of 9fps and especially on this camera is that it allows you to shoot in even lower light conditions. The camera is already f1.0 and an XL camera so you could shoot in very low light even with 200T and with the help of a light meter and some care you could even shoot on 500T! Obviously there is only automatic light metering so you need to have a light meter and keep an eye out for the possibility of overexposing the film if shooting 500T.

 

It's not very clear if all of their Rhonda cameras have the 9fps however. The text is ambiguous.

Edited by Freya Black
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They do open them all up... how much servicing they actually do though is the next question. The buy them up and broken ones they either set aside or mine for parts. This is true for all their refurbbed cameras. Do they completely disassemble and put all the cameras back together, likely not. But, that's probably not necessary either. I would imagine they open them all up, look for obvious gear wear, lube them, look for loose wires, corrosion and/or fungus. Then they button them back up, film test them and sell them.

 

I have a Pro814 that I love. It's a work horse. I used it for a few years and the motor got week so I got jamming and flickering. I sent it back to them and for a pretty hefty fee they replaced the motor. But, since then it's been a work horse again. It's nice to know I have a generally dependable camera that if I do have an issue with they will be able to fix. If you're just shooting home movies, that's not all that important. Just buy something on eBay and if it breaks after time, throw it away and get the next one. For myself, I need dependability out in the field for weddings and other events. I tried the eBay camera for a while at the beginning and it caused me all types of headaches and panic attacks.

 

When the new Kodak camera comes out, I will likely buy one and make it my new wedding camera again anticipating that it will be dependable at least for the first few years... although the Pro814 will still come with me as a backup.

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For myself, I need dependability out in the field for weddings and other events. I tried the eBay camera for a while at the beginning and it caused me all types of headaches and panic attacks.

 

Fair enough but I would say the cameras are cheap enough and small enough to carry spare bodies in case of an emergency.

I have 3 identical cameras for my next shoot.

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I have two of those sitting in a drawer. I like the lens on them, but they are crazy heavy to carry around. Also I think 24fps is the fastest it goes...I enjoy a little slow-mo every now and then; especially if I'm carrying a heavy camera.

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Fair enough but I would say the cameras are cheap enough and small enough to carry spare bodies in case of an emergency.

I have 3 identical cameras for my next shoot.

For weddings a camera failure can mean missed moments of a lifetime. If one camera fails I cannot say "hold on, camera issue, ok... Now do that again".

 

I of course carry spares but a badly timed failure would be bad.

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