Claus Harding

As someone who came back to editing after years away, Sony Vegas has been good to me. It runs well, and even on my cluttered machine, it has no problems with memory hogging or such. I would spring for the full version with surround sound and the built-in video scope. Claus.

Well, then the Nagra or Stella, by process of elimination, are it. If money is low, I guess EBay is the next stop if you want to go that route. Prepare thyself... :lol: The "portability" of a Nagra comes with a load of 'A'-size batteries. Fantastically well-built and good-sounding machines, though. If you wind up with a Zoom, the H4 is a real chameleon: it's a dinky little plastic box that actually puts out surprisingly clean sound with some good external mics. It does have Phantom Power built in. The only drawback is that it gobbles 'AA' batteries rather fast. Claus.

Hi Carly, "General songs" is awfully vague. It says nothing about your project or your music needs. Here are three options: You can buy "needledrops" (pre-recorded industrial music) for a flat fee, subject to use. You can pay for a composer to make you a small score to fit, and for the recording thereof. (I may be able to help with that, if you are heading in that direction.) You can buy sync. rights to an established song or composition. This can get very expensive. The two common denominators in all of the above are "copyright" and "money". Claus.

Peter, That sounds like a promising idea; how would this work, in terms of the legalities involved? Collective representation or each individual on his/her own? I would like to hear more. Claus.

Thank you Daniel and Stevie, I live in the US. The Leicina is up at Du-All right now, getting a full run-through. On the whole, and speaking as someone who has had 3 different Nizo sound cameras, I definitely do like the ergonomic functionality of the Nizo more than the one-of-a-kind layout of the Leicina. The handle on the Special is the worst joke one can imagine: a thin, hard stick to support one of the heaviest Super-8 cameras around. But the lens and construction are amazing. Claus.

Peter, Your question is phrased in such a way as to sound disingenuous: You are asking 'in theory' how people get their music, or you are trying to find a cheap/free source for your own project? Nothing wrong with either, but it's good to be clear when you ask. If you are looking for yourself: What is the project? What is the audience? What is the style of filmmaking? What kind of music are you looking for? Real instruments, samples or both? How much music do you need? There is a million home-recording musicians out there, along with god knows how many young conservatory-trained players/composers who can't get enough work, so the market is good. The results may vary, but... I'd look at names from small film festivals to see who scored what and where you can get to talk to them. Colleges. The music departments, by definition, will have such people in some form. Gearslutz.com is a large board that has people from the high end of the sound/music industry down to people like me who dabble in writing and recording at home, so that wouldn't be a bad place to fish a bit. "Free" carries its own cost. If only for the karma of it, a small payment is always better. Even if it is symbolic. Claus.

Hi Darren, I can offer two suggestions: One, you didn't say what you trimmed the end of the film with, only that you cut it straight. And the film should have leader on it from the lab? Depending on the projector, it may want a differently shaped cut of the tip of the film in order to take it in cleanly when auto-loading. For comparison, on my Elmos, there is a film trimmer on the front which gives the tip of the film a half-moon shape which makes it feed in correctly. Try cutting the tip at an angle and test it with that if you have no manual for this projector. Discard crumbled film as it won't thread right. (I don't know the machine in question. Is 'Duo' the model name or the brand name?) Two, it's certainly possible that the projector autoload function could have a problem; it wouldn't be the first projector with that issue. However, as you say the machine runs well otherwise, once the film is in, I'd go with no.1 and check the film first. The fact that the projector feeds the film into the mechanism is not necessarily a flaw, but possibly a safety feature, as my Elmos will do the same if the tip is not trimmed as the mechanism likes it. You do need to stop it fast as the film will bundle up quickly and start getting destroyed. It just gives you a few seconds extra if the film isn't threading right. Hope some of this helps, Claus.

That sums it up in so many ways. Beautiful. I understand the OP's thoughts. I work in TV production, with photography/film in my background, so from that perspective: We want something "different" yet I feel that more and more, many things are being shot with fear instead of just with creativity, especially with producers raised on TV and digital camcorders. You want grungy? Shoot grungy, don't sit in post and high-five the colorist because he came up with the digital approximation of it. TRUST YOUR SHOOTING. USE YOUR CAMERA and your shooter to get the images, instead of being so afraid it's "not going to work, so just shoot it straight, we can always add it...." No, you can't always add it. Because it's not the same. If you can trust neither your storyboard to 'cut right' nor your DoP to execute shots that link without having safety cover shots, that is not a "post" issue or a "production" issue, but a "pre" issue. I came across a fascinating read regarding the introduction of the video assist, with some philisophical thoughts about how it has influcenced, willingly or not, the decision-making process on set: http://www.escholarship.org/editions/view?...mp;brand=eschol Cinematographers and videographers have excellent tools today, but fear seems to be a big element, because in many cases (including TV production) the decision-makers don't know what they need to know; they go only by what they have seen, not to "get stuck". And there goes the feeling of freedom to create. Claus.

John Ford and Winton C. Hoch. Ford evidently was not much for sharing credit, but with Hoch, his films became art. Claus.

"History remember the few people who set out to do something despite what all the other a$$holes thought. ie 70% of the poster above." -Zack- I think our OP just found a crewmember.

Maybe I am just an ignoramus, but with 2K projection, what would doubling up give you, apart from more light, and convergence issues? Wouldn't it still look like the same flat garbage it looks like now in a theatre? ....I can't get over the line about the, what was it, "Splendor" of 4K theatre projection, and how it would take 65/70mm film to 'do justice' to it....thank you for the biggest belly laugh I've had in a while. Claus.

John, I don't know that there are any easy solutions. Personally, I do think split-image screens are the best solution for Super-8 as traditional ground glass just doesn't function too well in what are after all very small and sometimes very dim viewfinders. However, to your question: Short of knowing your lens and your distances very well by intuition (so you can rack the barrel by instinct) I can't think of a reliable way to have instant focus confirmation without first zooming in. I have yet to experiment with video assist (lipstick cam or similar on the viewfinder) so I can't say if an electronic solution might be able be set in such a way as to give you that 'kick' in the image when you hit focus, much like I get on the broadcast TV cameras I use. I doubt it, but I don't know for sure. Beyond that, a large depth of field might your savior in such situations. Claus.

Paul, That's even...better :blink: :lol: Not only don't you pay them; you actually hold their money (and presumably gain interest) while they work for free.....and if they quit beforehand, they are out $1000. Even P.T. Barnum would be impressed..... Claus.

If I didn't think this was a joke, I would be amazed at how Craigslist this feels. Bloody insulting is what it is. Claus.

Personally, after going through god knows how many models, in stores (I know, they crank them) at my broadcast work, and as part of convention displays, I went with a 700-series, 58-inch 1080 Panasonic plasma. Whatever words fit, the display looks 'organic' to me, in a way most LCDs haven't, so I am happy. No artifacting, motion weirdness or such, and beautiful black levels. I watch no broadcast stuff beyond the occational news; mainly Blu-Ray and regular DVDs of films and for that, the Panny shines. Claus.

Alessandro, The projectors run fine, with stable images, both with other 24 f.p.s. films and with commercial prints, so I know it is not a projection issue. That's the same reason I played the test rolls on both projectors. I guess I will have to run some more film in the Nizo to verify. The Leicina, in my mind, is destined for the shop, sadly enough. To follow up, has there been any kind of list put together of the 'worst offenders' in terms of the new re-loaded film stocks in Super-8, with regard to transport issues, or is the issue just random enough that it's a matter of luck? The only consensus I have seen has been that Kodak's own cassettes are still the best bet, while the re-loads like Velvia tend to be the culprits. Claus.

Hi All, Finally managed to get signed in here.... I have a Leicina Special, bought a while ago, and a recent purchase, a Braun Nizo Professional. The seller of the Special said he had no issues with the films he had run through the camera. However, after 2 rolls of film (Ekta 64, Ekta 100, done at 2 diff. labs) I see gate weave on both rolls which, comsidering the Special's reputation for stability, definitely isn't right. The reason I bought the beast is because it is supposed to be rock-steady. I got a Nizo 'Profi' at a good price, which, honestly enough, was described as having been tested 'dry' only (no film), but again...the dread weave after the first test roll (Tri-X, otherwise beautiful-looking.) Both sets of films were run on my Elmo GS-1200 and my Elmo ST-1200 for comparison (both projectors are in fine form.) We are not talking huge motion, but noticeably more than any of my older films have ever exhibited, so I think it reasonable to imagine these two top-runners should be able to do better. Both cameras are in very fine shape, looking like they came from good homes. They don't suck down batteries or exhibit any noises or other anomalies. I am not new to Super-8. I started in '75 and now got back into the game with these two cameras, so I am aware of the cassette issues, particularly pertaining to re-loaded films; I am however somewhat discouraged, and looking for some input here. A good facility in NY will go over these two for about $300-400 each, so it's not a casual decision. I am thinking the Leicina needs help, but I don't know yet about the Nizo. Is it a matter of 'running the rust' off it a bit; should I just press on with another pair of cassettes and hope for the best before sending it off? Sorry if this is 'old news'; I am just trying to wade through the variables on this issue and make a good decision. Claus.