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Dirt Cheap 35mm cameras


Matthew Buick

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Matt, if you're really hot to try some 35mm shooting you can do it, either with your own gear or by renting a camera package.

 

My opinion is: the cheapest way to shoot 35mm is to buy a Bell & Howell Eyemo off eBay, and process the film at home. Eyemos sell for about $500 and are in various states of disrepair, often having spent a part of their lives as crash cameras. But they are almost always repairable to functioning status.

 

If you want to work with a rental house they'll let you get a camera package. But you'll need to get your dad or some adult to sign off on the insurance forms. And 35mm packages are not camcorders, there's a lot more going on in terms of setup; you will probably want to hire an (adult) Camera Assistant to work with you. You'll be talking hundreds to thousands of dollars a day going this route.

 

Film stock and processing is going to be very expensive, no easy way around it. A 100' daylight spool of 35mm film lasts about a minute at 24fps, so you'll want to plan your shots very carefully - no video style run-on shots here. You can process 35mm b&w negative at home with a minimum of equipment and supplies, but you'll probably need a "rewind" processor like a Morse G3, or just toss the film in a bucket and slosh it around in the developer. If you choose the latter, the film will get scratched & nicked for that old-timey distressed look, which can be handy sometimes,

 

But you'd probably be better off experimenting in 16mm or Super 8; it's cheaper, the equipment is easier to handle, and good 16mm looks amazingly good. Even Super 8 has its charm.

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Guest Sasuke
I have already considerd Super 8, but it's a little bit 'old movie' look for me, I'm looking for a cheap ARRI 16S now.

 

 

Matt,

 

That "old Movie" look you are referring to is the look of REVERSAL film. Go and shoot

some KODAK VISION2 200T in Super 8 . It will blow you away. I will post an example later to

show you how it can look SHARP and NEW. Now, don't get me wrong the old look is nice too.

In time, I think you'll learn to appreciate that "OLD" look. Get on EBAY , look up the

CANON 814 or CANON 814E. GET THAT CAMERA. Good Lens. Make good looking images. Shoot

some Super 8 negative, YOU WILL LIKE IT. :)

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Matt,

 

That "old Movie" look you are referring to is the look of REVERSAL film. Go and shoot

some KODAK VISION2 200T in Super 8 . It will blow you away. I will post an example later to

show you how it can look SHARP and NEW. Now, don't get me wrong the old look is nice too.

In time, I think you'll learn to appreciate that "OLD" look. Get on EBAY , look up the

CANON 814 or CANON 814E. GET THAT CAMERA. Good Lens. Make good looking images. Shoot

some Super 8 negative, YOU WILL LIKE IT. :)

 

Wow thanks.

 

 

P.S I have decided that VistaVision holiday films are not for me, so I'm using three strip Technicolor instead.

Edited by Matthew Buick
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Wanna see a nice little short made in Super 8 with a Canon 814 AZ? Try Zensteve's "Trunk Fiction" on indietalk.com:

 

http://www.indietalk.com/showthread.php?t=6406

 

Good enough for the Internet, and better image than most Super 8's I've seen. And he's got (non) sync dialog to boot. Interesting forum thread accompanying the short for anyone interested.

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Guest Sasuke
Wow thanks.

P.S I have decided that VistaVision holiday films are not for me, so I'm using three strip Technicolor instead.

 

 

Matt,

 

I've posted a link to a site that has a still of Kodak 5274 200t Negative film that I shot on

Super 8, about 3 years ago. I posted it under the SUPER 8 only section out of respect for

the forum elders.

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  • 7 months later...

The main reason you'd shoot 35mm right now is for historical reasons, by the time you get enough money and a script together to shoot a film, 35mm film may be history!

 

Of course, 35mm is cool. The first time you get your rushes back you're all excited about seeing such crispy images, all filmed by YOU. It's sorta like the forbidden fruit, the format of the pro's. But then you quickly get over that buzz, and then it's just business as usual.

 

If your hands itch, like mine did once, go get some short ends and see if you can borrow a 35mm camera for a day or rent one over a weekend. You're still going to be stuck for lab minimums, we're talking $70 per item (negative processing is an "item", film dailies is another "item", video transfer another "item"). If you get a print done and want to see it in all its on screen glory, a guy at the lab will run it on a projector for you once or twice.

 

Best bet if you really want the film look is to stick to 16mm right now. You can get the equipment cheaper, it still looks VERY GOOD, and if you want to project the film 16mm projectors are a very cheap commodity. If you're so into the 35mm look, shoot on the 100 asa or 50 asa color negative stocks, that'll give you a very close approximation (and it'll teach you to light). If you want to have some fun shoot the Plus X reversal B&W, that's a close match to 35mm B&W film (even though you need a LOT of light).

 

Most important of all, it matters WHAT you're putting on film, not the tool you're using :)

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Wel..I could argue that you can make a film for $1000 if it's a really short one and you know what you are doing ;)

 

Of course it all depends what your film requires and whether you are going to pay people or get slaves...

 

I considered buying a Konvas while I was studying in Toronto but my shoot fell apart because of other reasons.. I've seen Konvases go for about 500 bucks on ebay by a guy that got only praise on konvas mailing list.

 

And I'm not even counting the money you get back when/if you sell the camera after the production ;)

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My first 35mm motion picture camera was a reostate motored Konvas 1m with 3 mags, 5 lenses and and a bunch of accessories including a 2 power cords, 2 different style hand cranks and a handle for hand held work. The camera was and is in almost mint condition without any visable signs of wear at all even on the paint. It cost $350.00 + shipping. Don't let anyone EVER tell you you can't do something if you really want it but never forget you better be prepared to pay the price to make your dreams happen and that usually means a lot of sacrifice, diappointment and pain. B)

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  • 2 weeks later...

Or you can use a half-frame camera and shoot 3 seconds of film (72 frames) on a normal 36 exposure film!

There are registration issues, and narrative filmmaking, as we know it, is pretty much impossible, but it's still a rush to see it projected. And there are loads of filmstocks to choose from at your local photography store.

 

Mat

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  • Premium Member
My first 35mm motion picture camera was a reostate motored Konvas 1m with 3 mags, 5 lenses and and a bunch of accessories including a 2 power cords, 2 different style hand cranks and a handle for hand held work.

I got to the point where I could shoot film with my Arri 2B (ex-Doggiecam that was upgraded with 2C internal mechanism, 1.85 GG, etc.) with a total investment of $1500. Camera, 200 foot mag, wild motor, motorcycle battery, 40mm Cooke SPII lens, and an old Miller Professional head on wood sticks I've had for years. I've spent a lot more since but at $1500 I was shooting pretty good looking 35mm.

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  • 9 years later...

I recently downloaded a pdf file of the schematics for a 35mm film movie camera.How would I get a replica built?I plan on going into production on my 1st feature within the next year and getting it replicated should be cheaper,than buying one already made.Companies who have them already made are just capitalizing on how scarce these cameras are.

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Any one off machines are expensive, so manufacturing a functioning 35mm film camera is going to involve employing highly skilled machinists (therefore expensive). Don't confuse the cost of mass produced cameras with hand built cameras, they are different processes, with the production scale hugely reducing the unit costs of the former.

 

You don't need to buy a camera for feature film, renting is the way to go or buy then sell the camera at the end.

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@David Mullen, ASC Well,how much would someone build it for me at a bargain?I want my 1st feature to be done on film.

 

If you want to shoot on film then just rent or buy a camera on eBay then sell it at the end of the shoot. There are already great cameras already built so unless you plan on starting a line of motion picture cameras to sell, it's unnecessary and would likely outweigh the costs of the budget for your film.

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