tim quince

me too! ps - some of you haven't got signatures. mmmhmmmm

Hey dude - i've not even heard of this grey card, but thanks for the info - i'll keep my eye's out for one. I'm trying to get the cash to give my little fella a runout, and will wait and see how the lighting goes. I was hoping to get a dark, grainy, badly lit image but so you can still see stuff, and i've gotta wait and see what the original footage looks like, and then work from there. I'm sure a grey card is cheaper than a light meter tho! cheers tim

'sup. Arthur dude - i know you posted this a while ago, but just in case you haven't got a manual yet: go to google; select images, and then put in 814 e manual canon (i'm guessing you have the electronic version of the 814), and do the search. One of these puts you to a site with the whole manual there in seperate jpegs (a bit small but you can read it). Sorry this is like a treasure hunt and not a simple link, but for some reason i can't get the link to work. I have the 814 autozoom first edition camera, but am in the same boat as you so would be no help with your questions probably. Am saving up for the light batteries still. Take it easy tim the usiless :ph34r:

Cheers for that - good stuff to know with the f-stop changes. I know it's a case of trial and error, and i will actually take it serious and log the f-stop used with each shot to know how it looks and where it went wrong. I'm gonna use the internal light meter as much as poss (i do the same with my slr camera in pointing to area that need to be lit correctly). My only problem with this camera is that when it's a dark area it's virtually impossible to read what the light meter is saying, as the needle bit of the view-finder gets the light from the front of the camera as well. I think for this an external light meter might be an investment for the future. Thanks for your help here. tim

Yep - I'm reading the same thing when I'm doing a bit of research on the internet. Mercury batteries are banned and alkaline one's give an uneven supply. There's a few going on ebay which I'll go for (The Weiner ones(!)). I don't really have the option of even thinking about 1.5v batteries as I have no seperate light meter with which to manually set the aperature. even though the manual says that this can be done. I'm gonna get me some MRB625's! (I just hope i don't get them shipped all the way from the usa to find that the light meter is actually broken!). Thanks to both of you for helping me out! Tim ps - this site is class! I came on to get some help with my camera and i've found out there's a massive super8 community out there! It's like a big universal family! :) (I feel like singing a song but i'll refrain)

Hi R! Thanks for that - I do do the occasional search but normally to no avail, but just been on ebay and there's a faulty one on ebay going cheap (with a few days left), so if it stays that way i'll go for it for the case and the lens cap! I love it when a plan comes together! (to be said with cigar in mouth). My camera does look like a good 'un - all i have to do now is save up for some film and some batteries! yours cinematically tim

I've just checked the manual and the camera - It has a battery tester built in and so i thought that that wouldn't be the cause the problem, but i took the batteries out and the battery level (for the rest of the camera) is still fine. I think you have hit the nail on the head! Thank you. I'll buy the batteries and will see if they do the trick. I feel a bit of an idiot to put up one of those silly amateur posts now, but i'm greatful i still might not have bought a turkey! One silly additional question if you might be able to help - are there ever cases of people selling lens caps? Reading some of the posts (and you're one of the home-run hitters! woohoo!) the canon lens has a special coating which should really be protected. Mine is in a Bolex box and wrapped in big bubble wrap! Anyhows - many thanks for your help dude tim

Hi there! It's the normal 814 auto zoom. I was a bit gutted because the fellow i bought it from said it had the slo-mo of 36 fps, so i kinda hoped it was was Electronic version, but alas... (no macro or slo-mo for me!) Do you think i've bought what will be a beautiful but expensive paperweight?! tim

Make that faulty light meter. Sorry.

Hi there! I need help (mentally) and i really need help with my new camera. I've just bought a canon 814 camera on ebay for £46 on ebay. No lens cap but it looks a beaut! However, before even putting in some film (not to mention not having nothing to view it on or cut it up) I've seen the light meter doesn't seem to be functioning. :blink: Altho i'm finding looking thru the viewfinder harder to see thru than i thought i would (i used a 16mm bolex in college and that seemed fine) the light meter doesn't seem to be working whatsoever. I'm wondering if this is because i haven't put film in yet ( i doubt it but you never know...) - i've set it to manual but the needle just stays to the side. If i move the O-C dial it just carries the needle along with it like a dog on a leash! I think it's broken, but i'm hoping i'm just being silly and haven't thought of something obvious. Any help would be greatly appreciated because i wanna get this baby in action! Many thanks and hope you are all doing superfly. tim