EMP 16mm Camera

Pavan Deep · March 16, 2018

Has anyone ever seen or used one of these cameras;

https://www.pacificrimcamera.com/rl/rlRichterMisc.htm

Pav

Simon Wyss · March 16, 2018

Can’t say that I have. More in the spy/concealed/inconspicuous corner

Tyler Purcell · March 19, 2018

Very cool camera, never seen anything like it really. Doesn''t mention how loud it is, but it's interesting the mention super 16. It does seem like a pretty old design, but maybe its not?

Mark Dunn · March 19, 2018

1978.

https://www.questia.com/magazine/1P3-1310594851/the-emp-envelope-minimum-possible-16mm-camera

No suggestion it was self-blimped- I wonder if more than a handful were ever made?

Visual Products seem to have one for sale..

Doug Palmer · March 20, 2018

1978.

https://www.questia.com/magazine/1P3-1310594851/the-emp-envelope-minimum-possible-16mm-camera

No suggestion it was self-blimped- I wonder if more than a handful were ever made?

Visual Products seem to have one for sale..

Couldn't see it on their site...?

I'm surprised if only a small number were manufactured, unless they had problems. It would seem a nice way of capturing 16mm images with a tiny camera always at the ready. And I'd think there would be a market today for something like this.

Edited March 20, 2018 by Doug Palmer

Mark Dunn · March 20, 2018

Couldn't see it on their site...?

I'm surprised if only a small number were manufactured, unless they had problems.

I suggested it because there was so little reference to it anywhere, especially here, where some pretty obscure devices turn up.

Couldn't find Richter's website, though, what did you find?

Edited March 20, 2018 by Mark Dunn

Pavan Deep · March 20, 2018

You're right there is very little information regarding this camera, we don't know how loud it is and in it's smallest configuration using 100ft on cores it seems complex as I think you need a few pre-loaded mags when you're filming otherwise it seems too fiddly. I contacted Visual Products, they told me that the camera sold a while ago, but the web page pops up when you do a search for the EMP camera on Google, they have no other information on the camera. I can see that in today's market this camera would work, but it lacks a reflex viewfinder.

On another note I have started using old 16mm 50ft magazine cameras with single perf film, loading it in a simple way - not the preferred Kodak way and getting very good results, these cameras are very cheap, small and surprisingly quiet.

Pav

Edited March 20, 2018 by Pavan Deep

Doug Palmer · March 20, 2018

You're right there is very little information regarding this camera, we don't know how loud it is and in it's smallest configuration using 100ft on cores it seems complex as I think you need a few pre-loaded mags when you're filming otherwise it seems too fiddly. I contacted Visual Products, they told me that the camera sold a while ago, but the web page pops up when you do a search for the EMP camera on Google, they have no other information on the camera. I can see that in today's market this camera would work, but it lacks a reflex viewfinder.

On another note I have started using old 16mm 50ft magazine cameras with single perf film, loading it in a simple way - not the preferred Kodak way and getting very good results, these cameras are very cheap, small and surprisingly quiet.

Pav

It would be nice to see how these EMP cameras are constructed. The limited number of moving parts is interesting. I'd have thought a reflex finder may have been possible, though maybe they thought it wasn't necessary because of the small parallax distance and a likelihood of short lenses with big depth of field being used.

Pav, how would you rate the steadiness of your 50ft mag cameras ?

Edited March 20, 2018 by Doug Palmer

Pavan Deep · March 21, 2018

The steadiness of the 50ft mag cameras seems to be surprisingly very good.

Pav

Erik Emerson · August 9, 2024

Late to this party!

Had my hands on one of these maybe 20 years ago. Was chatting with the late Derrick Whitehouse at Whitehouse AV about some N-9 type gun cameras I have, when he said he had something cool to show me....and he brought out the EMP. If I remember it right, he was asking like $2500. And if I'd had that to spare I'd likely have bought it.

The impressions that I got were that, while similar in some ways to the N-9...particularly in terms of size and daylight magazine loading, the EMP was significantly lighter. That's due in part to the plastics that make up the outside of most of the body and mags. Also the N-9 has kind of a heavy duty 3-speed gearbox for frame rate, as well as motorized shutter angle control and overrun control. EMP has none of that...crystal (!!!) 24 or 25fps is all you get. Like the N-9, single claw with no registration. Claw is on the "correct" side, so perhaps S16 conversion is possible? And I could be mistaken (it's been 20+ years), but I feel like the movement was based on one of the CP cameras...simple, quiet, and serviceable.