Gianni Raineri

I've studied the moviestuff way with my DIY & Dumpster Diving & how cheap can I go... I' dislike programming, electronics, and engineering... but admire the industrial design of cine film and the Projectors and Cameras. For guidance, inspiration, and luck to get that alchemy and creative muse flowing, I just pray to the 8mm goddess. B) I find the cheap working projectors at flea markets (o.k. ... boot sales..., I'm in Britain). The last three projectors cost me two for .50p each, and one for £2.00, and they are in great working condition. OK one I thought it was broke untill I added drops of oil in all the main gears and joints. I recently improvised temporary "film chain of sorts" into a virtual quarz-chrome-o-scope quick time movies converter. I've done it previously with other projectors any recording device that works, cell phones, broken digital cameras, etc... My latest system used a Sony Digital 8's slow shutter mode with negative art effect for Quartzchrome reversal film processed as negative. I removed the 50w bulb and replaced it with an modified Ikea 10w Quartz "NON" lamp (£1.00 bootsale find) and wow it works! Just this morning I bought an ancient Kodak glass color correction filter kit (0.50p) for testing transferring color neg film. I hear that orange mask needs a blue filter..... we'll see... Sorry it's real time capture...it's not frame by frame which for me involves hacking a USB mouse (£2.00) and microswitch (£.50p) into the projector movement....to talk to the computer time lapse software. Even my experiments are only temporary and for just one movie, it's great for uploading personal stuff to my google video and youtube....my plans are to improve and get better as time goes by... Here's the result, one and a half minutes as shot by my six year old boy, on a £2.00 super 8 camera, with outdated Quartzchrome reversal film, home processed in Ilford's D76 clone soup and telecined in the above system... Why don't you try to adapt a transport from a motorised film editor, or a broken projector, or the guts of a melted cheese gear Kodak Instamatic, or other Super 8 camera to get the film transport working. Sorry about any typo's in this message, I just cannot figure out how to edit these after posting it... Gianni B)

My PAL Sony DCR TRV 120E camcorder with several 8mm projectors... not done 16mm yet. When the camera is set to slow shutter mode, flicker and strobing goes away... i think it's slower than 1/25th of a second smooths out the 25 fps PAL. Not frame accurate, but close enough to view on TV and maybe rough cutting with Imovie. I remember VHS assemble editing time code burned VHS's, then giving the tape to the online editors. Gianni

DIY is fine up north during the long dark winters... Good for quick feedback on tests and experimental or artistic stuff where you are the only judge. Use the pro labs for serious work, or at least a private or rented darkroom. Drying the film is a no brainer - either make yourself a drying rack, or get a dime store laundry rack, the kind for hanging knickers and socks. Expect DIY dust and scrathes, especially if you've got junior Jedi's running around with light sabres. I have not tried E-6 yet, but I've done black and white Quartzchrome in Ilford's D-76 Clone developer and fixer, came out ok with digital processing after DV telecine to my Imac. I've done colour neg super 8 in C-41 process, four reels (sequentially on at a time) with the same 1 liter chemical kit. Thats one liter of chemistry for four rolls of film... chemistry costs £16 for a Liter, or £4 per 50' reel. Don't know about stretching an E-6 one-liter chemical batch to four reels of film. For the Colour neg stuff, I wiped the remjet off by hand with a kitchen sponge. Another person told me (on the yahoo movieprocessing group) they removed the remjet in a "pré bath 10g of bórax + 10g of sodium caronate + 1liter of water". Gianni B)

You can forget my previous post :P and just crop the 8mm frame during telecine to a 16:9 camcorder. Note that 16:9 mode camcorders "letter box" (crop) the video ccd frame. This way you'll be cutting (vertical)resolution twice, once chopping the top and bottom off the film frame, and once again in the video. Don't know which consumer camcorders use full frame during 16:9 mode. Anamorphic keeps the vertical resolution, and stretches or expands the horzontal. Gianni

I'm strictly amateur... playing around and experimenting. Follow John's direction if you wish to go the professional way. As a student and willing to experiment, unless you plan to put this into a wedding filming package business or dramitic or documentary, or corporate video... ignore standards and have fun with learning about this filmming media.. it's stictly amateur rules for playing with the kit. When you get serious and go 16 or 35mm, either purchase the Russian optic kit, or rent the real stuff spending your producers money.... You could go Anamorphic but with that big lens on that nice camera, you will need a great big Anamorphic Lens maybe costing a few hundred or thousands... I think you may be restricted to the longer zoom settings, like short telephoto with the camera you mentioned. Maybe instead of wide screen use a simple video lens wide angle adaptor?...I've got a few anamorphics on Ebay for £40ish... You won't need to file your camera gate, also known as "super duper 8"... from http://www.friendlyfirefilms.ca/ I've got some tiny Hypergonar French anamorphic lenses that work with P1 Single 8 cameras from Fujica. They may work with other Super 8 cameras, these lenses work with the smaller cameras, easier and lighter and take advantage of the smaller size of this small format, super 8. The pixs that follow are on the filmshooting.com image galleries. I've seen a Chinon Pocket 8 that came with Anamorphic lenses again a tiny kit. http://super8wiki.com/index.php/Chinon_Pocket-8 My next goal is to fix an 16mm Anamorphic projection lens onto a Russian Zenit Quartz 1x8S-2 or 1x8S-1, minus it's zoom lens which screws out. Take off that zoom and it's a nice 15mm (or so) prime perfect for an anamorphic infront, and econmical too. http://super8wiki.com/index.php/Zenit_Quarz_1x8S-2 Have you ever tried shooting maybe a still or video camera with an anamorphic? Super 8 fittings (Do It Yourself) can be done with projector lenses.... Somebody over on filmshooting.com just offered his anamorphic up for sale..... You ought to get an Anamorphic and try it out on any cheapo $10 super 8 like a Kodak M2 or M4, or one of the other simple prime lens cameras (avoid most other older Kodak Super 8's). Make your own view finder and bracket or Gaffer tape the lens onto the body of the camera and shoot some tests. The 16mm projector Anamorphics work ok. Important to note that you'll need to use it in on both the shootin and in the telecine projection too. There may be some letter boxing for the Mini DV bit... and you'll need to figure out some workflow maybe telecine it with a 16:9 camcorder and unsqueeze it during data processing... I use quicktime pro for conversions, and change the X:Y dimensions during export. Something like (sorry, estimates only, I'm terrible with numbers and I just choose what looks or feels right..) original movie file is 320x240 then export to 320x120 or 480x240...... Then you'll get wide screen. This would be for web casting the movie... maybe on google video. Larger dimensions for data projectors or close to 2000 x 1000 (1920 x1020) for HD video if you can telecine it with such resolution... Here again a filmshooting com home theatre amateur: http://www.filmshooting.com/scripts/galler...ipment/Image044 I've got a Godzilla Super 8 film that's in Widescreen. Looks like normal film frames just holding the strip to the light. When projecting it normal, it looks a bit odd, but with the anamorphic lens placed and aligned perfectly in front of the projector lens, it's like two or three times wider.. really cool, and Mothra actually frightens my 5 year old. Gianni B)

If anybody has the video to loan of this episode, please pm me! Gianni

Grab the Canon, if it works, but wait on the Nizo. I woudn't spend more on super 8 cameras that what I'm ready to throw away... Every single camera is over twenty years old, them Nizos thirty or forty something... even if they look good. Spend your money on fresh film and processing and talent. I think i paid £25 for my Nizo. For $120 I would get a higher class model like a three digit model, or the four digit sound models are quiet and worth more. The models ending with a one, like the 481 or 561 are better because they have advanced time lapse with auto exposure on them, the two digit models have simple time lapse. Some of the sexy Beaulieu 4008ZMII's go for 120 Euros in Germany. That's a cool camera, but expect to spend $300 to service them by Bjorn Andersson of Beaulieu Sweden. The difference is the XX1's has a Auto M and TIME Exposure setting that will stay open until the light sensor decides it time to advance the shutter, while the two digit models just adjust the aperature and advance the frame at the rated FPS. So with the 481's and 581'syou can take photos of streets at night and get long lines of car lights drawn accros the frame, impossible with the two digit models like the S80's. I have heard that the three digit model will also wait with the shutter open pointed at the storm clouds and close after a few bursts of lightning. Not enough lighting in London for me to test this out. Gianni

Nowhere Labs in North London has workshops and help you to learn or can teach you super 8 processing. Use the kitchen sink and bathroom or living room for drying after it's quiet. Get a Lomo tank £50 ish. A liter of C-41 or E-6 chemistry ranges about £15-20 and soups anywhere from five or ten carts of super 8 if you do them in the same day or two. Sponge the black stuff off the film yourself..... Frank in the Super 8 Reversal Lab in the Netherlands will process E-6 for 12 Euros, C-41 for 20 Euros... ToddAO in London is the pro house, think £50 for one cart colour neg filmstock - processing - telecine - mini DV tape. Try to enter some super 8 festivals, maybe just entering will motivate you... I still think you ought to use other people's money! Ask around. Sell your camcorder! Gotta schmooze with the glitteratti.... Sell yourself to the local business people. A few hundred pounds is good for their business. Recently, my housing association offered me money for political correctness movies, but I'm not into that ATM... things like "Get a life, don't get pregnant", "Avoid ASBO's", "Do Sports, not Drugs" ..... Gianni in London

Bjarne! Have you visited the portal onsuper8 ? Seems a few do this sort of thing in Europe. Giann in London

Important Health and Saftey point: Need Eye Protection with Nizo Viewfinders. This applies to other Super 8 cameras too... The Eyepiece Cups have mostly perished over time. Making a new one is easy. You still need eyecups on the cameras, expecially with the Nizo's and Chinons protruding view finders. Your eye can get hurt real bad if the camera gets knocked while you are looking through the finder without the eyecups. I made one myself using a plastic water bottle and black tape, works great. Home made eyecups are good for you, cost almost nothing and are quick to make. I ought to sell these things on ebay! Finished eyecup click here Replacement Eyecup being made Gianni

er... Yes.... As long as it's a Super 8 film cartridge. Not Single 8. Not 'Regular 8' also known as 'Standard 8'. If you mean 'Can they read the new super 8 film stocks with all the different film speeds'... It depends which model you've got... Super 8 wiki's got 155 different Cinon models listed. Super 8 Wiki Chinon Page Super 8 Wiki Main Page Gianni

They are mid to lowend in the Nizo-Canon universe. Better ones exist, but snap them up to start your collection. Both are great cameras, for starting out, eventually you'll find better ones. Starship Enterprise Captain Jame T. Kirk used a Nizo S80 in one of his missions. I've got the Nizo S80, I've got other Canons, but not the 512XL. Shoot a test cartridge with both cameras, and you will be ready to go. How much? Both will give you a good system, one for Sunny and Outdoors, one for Darker Days and Indoors Available Light. I'm into wide angle, which neither of these do, so I would get a cheap .07X or wider adaptor lens, either screw on or gaffer tape on. Nizo will do basic time lapse, Gianni Sorry won't let me edit the post... ... The Nizo will do basic time lapse, stop motion, has auto and manual exposure with wide range of film speed, , a variable shutter, kind of film stock, goes manual, and becomes a parts donor to for your next better Nizo. Gianni

This pros and cons, etc... discussion applies with film vs digital too. See the results on www.Flickr.com. In fact, it's human nature... to seek improvement and a better way of doing things. Another reason to shooting film, without convincing arguments either way, is shooting film for the 'art' of it. I like the quotation used at http://www.onsuper8.org "The technology of yesterday becomes the artform of today" Marshall McLuhan, 1911-1980. He's the bloke who said "the media is the message". Nowdays his followers argue that virtual reality is more real than reality... :lol: Film technology is improving and keeping pace with Digital and Video, but for instant feedback mini DV and digital wins that race. Just shoot with two cameras braced together on a flash bracket, simultaneously filming and DV-ing. I use an old Sony Ruvi for 8mm filming, but any cheap digi-cam that makes short movie clips will do. When you get rich and famous, you can use the fancy AV kit that comes with a rented 16 or 35mm camera. Getting over the time delay hurdle, be grateful for the cheap processing available in the USA. If it's filmstock expense that bothers you, just do what 'real' filmakers do and join their fraternity. Using other people's money sharpens your filming technique, I think most (non-amateur) movies are made with other peoples money! Alternatively you can process the film yourself. Once you've got all the kit and chemicals, film dry to dry in three to four hours. That's same day results. Then there are the pro labs that do next day, although world wide very few do it in Super 8. <_< You can get some arts funding or grants to start up your own local Super 8 society. Use that to learn the technique. Don't wait for anyone to teach you, just do it yourself and get publicity from the local and community news media. Gianni

I forgot to mention, but the best place in the world to get information about Super 8 Kit is the Shooting section of onsuper 8 org: http://www.onsuper8.org http://homepage.mac.com/onsuper8/shoot.html Covers Equipment Sales and Repairs, Filmstock and some Equipment Guides too. It will take a year or more just to get to grips with the super 8 scene. If you are just starting out, remember the learning process is life long, and long term. The rewards will keep on comming as long as you keep on investing your time and effort. Good luck in the film course. If you can, shoot & view plenty of carts prior to starting the class. Experiment with your film and cameras outside of class, to master the equipment techniques, so you can experiment with your filmmaking grammar, syntax and language in the class. (Unless it's a hardware technique course) Don't worry about cameras (too much) for now if they produce a decent image and work ok. Spend the cash on film and processing, maybe some talent like writers or catering on the shoot! Get people to give you money and film and cameras in exchange for credits, and spend the money at the lab. Think of this journey as a long angled slope, easy at first, getting steeper the farther you go along. As you get more experienced, you get more demanding of your kit and resources. Hopefully you'll soon be posting in the 16, 35mm, or HD forums! Gianni in London

You ought to got through quite a few camera bodies. I've got a bunch of the sound and silent Nizo's. I bought like five of them from just one chap who was not interested in them. A few work great. I would assume a hit of one good camera from every two or three finds, and treat them as disposable cameras. Do you have something specific that the Canon Nikon & Nizo's fulfill? Why narrow your choices when so many good cams abound? Try some of the other brands, I would think being choosy is bad with Super 8. They each have their unique personalities. What's wrong with the Russian, Elmos, Chinon, Bolex and Beaulieus? Who services them for you? I'm in Europe, and I've only heard of a few folks who service Super 8. Bjorn Andersson services Beaulieu's. The 4008 ZMII's cameras are sexy, cool and classy and glamourous. If you have the money to fix up a quality camera, get a few of them, and use Bjorn. Get a Russian super 8 from Olex in the Ukraine or other vendor. Those Soviet Double Super 8 are built like a tank, and have excellent prime lenses, film gates, are very small and easy to shoot. Their problem is finding somebody to split the film stock after processing. The Bolex 160 macro is another wonderfull camera, one of the earliest, sharpest, and exotic cameras in the world! I picked up a perfectly good, Bolex 155 macro for £5.00 last month. Gianni in London

Coudn't edit the previous post. I wanted to add the phrase to use when asking your subjects to pose for the camera: "Moderu Ninate Kudasai" pronounced phonetically, means "Please pose for the camera"... I used that all the time. Also "Watashi wa Kameraman Desu" means I'm a Camera Man. "Watashi wa Eiga Kantoku" means "I'm a Movie Director" "Watashi wa Eiga oh Tsukute imasu" means "I'm making a movie" Gianni B)

I lived in Tokyo and did a bit of freelance photography in the early 90's. If you have no native speaking buddies as interpreters, expect some confusion and disorientation, like you are on another planet. Have fun with it and enjoy! I would take a 4x5 notebook and marker pens for two reasons.... ONE: Most everybody in Japan has studied and can read and write English, but very few can actually speak it. Using your notebooks and marker pens for communication will help alot. Make about twenty Japanese - English flash cards with the important buzz words on 'em, very large font size, and make up new ones as you go. Involving people you meet with creating new ones is kinda fun and is a real ice breaker. For example, if you find a camera shop, walk in and confidently ask for something impossible and complex like "One Hour Super 8 processing", I woudn't expect to find any.... TWO: Shoot a few frames of your note pages (like a clapper board) at opening shots or at least for the start of the reels. Maybe use single frame mode for them, with your new friends holding the page with their name and emails on camera. If that's not your thing, at least use a digital camera for that... Gianni B) B)

I am interested in this. Sounds good for colour negative telecine, or making Super 8 'prints' using a camera like the Elmo 1012 S-XL instead of a DV camcorder. Gianni in London :)