Super 8... Super Cool or Super Stupid?

Carl Hall

Carl Hall

Messages
3,817
Name
Carl
Edit My Images
Yes
About a year or so ago my girlfriend's granddad gave me his old Super 8 camera that he bought in either the late 70s or early 80s. It's been kept in a box ever since, but in our recent house move I came across it again and put it with the rest of my cameras in the display cabinet. Now it just sits there looking all neglected and lonely, and it makes me sad that it hasn't been used for a long time.

I've had a quick look into the costs and I think it's likely to cost about £30 for a roll of film, £20 or so to develop, and £30 to digitize, so £80 all in for a 3.5 min video... Quite a lot of money to spaff away on something which might end up being complete rubbish lol.

Does anyone here shoot super 8 or shot it in the last couple of years? Is it worth a roll for the fun factor or am I mental for even thinking about it?
 
Is the fun of using the camera an experience worth £80 to you? Having seen the (admittedly projected) results from Super-8 I'm not sure you'd find a lot of fun in the end result...
 
Don't spend £30 digitising it. Just get a projector and view as intended.


Steve.
 
Carl Hall said:
Does anyone here shoot super 8 or shot it in the last couple of years? Is it worth a roll for the fun factor or am I mental for even thinking about it?
Click to expand...

I'm probably more interested in 16mm ultimately, but I've been thinking about going into super 8 as a stepping stone toward that. I was probably looking to use these guys for film, processing, and scanning for £66: http://www.on8mil.com
 
Last edited:
We've got loads of super 8, some family cine, some bought animated cartoony kids stuff and a Lotus 7 F1 porn vid called Hot Rod.....:ROFLMAO:
We also have the screen and projector, which keeps snapping its elastic band and burning holes in the film.
I've digitized the family cine reels by just recording the projection with a camcorder, it did a great job.
I dunno about shooting some fresh, I love the vids, there's something quite charming about the way it renders, the flicky nature and saturated kodachrome colour is quaintly cool compared with the crisp synthetic look of digi video.
Its difficult to be dispassionate and separate that look from the emotional connections I have with the content of the family cine's, on the other hand I think anything shot on film in the 60's and 70's is completely bonza..:)
 
Super cool Carl, just one of the funnest and enjoyable ways of making movies, super 8 has a look all of its own and no amount of cheating algorithms will give a digital version the charm and wonder of genuine film.

These people will do the Film, process and scan for about £60 depending on which film you chose http://www.gaugefilm.co.uk/store/c2/Reversal_Film___Process___Scan.html

Pretty sure there are some other options available if you search t'interweb?

skysh4rk said:
I'm probably more interested in 16mm ultimately, but I've been thinking about going into super 8 as a stepping stone toward that. I was probably looking to use these guys for film, processing, and scanning for £66: http://www.on8mil.com
Click to expand...

RJ depending what 16mm camera you're thinking of I do stil have a very nice 16mm Bolex kit from my days at university that I might consider selling.
 
Just use a super 8 video app on your phone and set fire to the money. It will be just the same result ;)
 
Thanks all, some good points to ponder :)

StephenM said:
Is the fun of using the camera an experience worth £80 to you? Having seen the (admittedly projected) results from Super-8 I'm not sure you'd find a lot of fun in the end result...
Click to expand...

I don't mind spending the money on it (I'll probably only do it once as I just want to try it out really), but only if it's actually a fun experience. I know the quality is going to be poor but all the videos I've seen have that "feel" that I really like.

Steve Smith said:
Don't spend £30 digitising it. Just get a projector and view as intended.


Steve.
Click to expand...

I thought that, but tbh I've got cupboards full of unnecessary bits and pieces I've bought for film cameras, and I really don't need a projector taking up more space :D I had a quick look on eBay and it seems that the projectors are more expensive than digitising a roll anyway.

skysh4rk said:
I'm probably more interested in 16mm ultimately, but I've been thinking about going into super 8 as a stepping stone toward that. I was probably looking to use these guys for film, processing, and scanning for £66: http://www.on8mil.com
Click to expand...

Ahh cool, cheers RJ. I will have a look at their site. :)

joxby said:
We've got loads of super 8, some family cine, some bought animated cartoony kids stuff and a Lotus 7 F1 porn vid called Hot Rod.....:ROFLMAO:
We also have the screen and projector, which keeps snapping its elastic band and burning holes in the film.
I've digitized the family cine reels by just recording the projection with a camcorder, it did a great job.
I dunno about shooting some fresh, I love the vids, there's something quite charming about the way it renders, the flicky nature and saturated kodachrome colour is quaintly cool compared with the crisp synthetic look of digi video.
Its difficult to be dispassionate and separate that look from the emotional connections I have with the content of the family cine's, on the other hand I think anything shot on film in the 60's and 70's is completely bonza..:)
Click to expand...

Ahh that sounds great, I bet it's amazing playing the old family stuff on a projector. I think it's the soft and flicky image that I like, if I had taken a Super 8 on holiday a few years ago I bet rewatching the footage now would be awesome. I sometimes look back at the videos I've taken on my phone and they just seem so lifeless. I think what draws me towards trying Super 8 is the same thing that drew me into shooting film in the first place really.

RaglanSurf said:
Super cool Carl, just one of the funnest and enjoyable ways of making movies, super 8 has a look all of its own and no amount of cheating algorithms will give a digital version the charm and wonder of genuine film.

These people will do the Film, process and scan for about £60 depending on which film you chose http://www.gaugefilm.co.uk/store/c2/Reversal_Film___Process___Scan.html

Pretty sure there are some other options available if you search t'interweb?



RJ depending what 16mm camera you're thinking of I do stil have a very nice 16mm Bolex kit from my days at university that I might consider selling.
Click to expand...

Not sure if you're saying is super 8 is super cool, or just referring to me by my full title, Super Cool Carl :D

Thanks Nick, I had a look on that site initially when I was trying to find out the costs. You sound like you've taken a few videos on Super 8? I've watched quite a few on YouTube over the last few days and I think it's definitely something I want to try once

srichards said:
Just use a super 8 video app on your phone and set fire to the money. It will be just the same result ;)
Click to expand...

I could make a super 8 style video of me burning the money :LOL:
 
Carl Hall said:
I thought that, but tbh I've got cupboards full of unnecessary bits and pieces I've bought for film cameras, and I really don't need a projector taking up more space :D I had a quick look on eBay and it seems that the projectors are more expensive than digitising a roll anyway
Click to expand...

A few years ago, my wife inherited her great aunt's Super Eight home movie collection. The aunt had the good sense to have them copied onto video for future generations to watch... Betamax!

We watched them on a projector.

If you change your mind, I have a projector you can have for the cost of postage, although that might be more than the cost of digitising too!!


Steve.
 
I did shoot quite a lot of Super 8 back in the day and it still gives me a buzz now when I look back at them, I sold most of my Super 8 cameras when I bought the 16mm kit but do have the urge to buy another when I see a good one crop up on Ebay. I do still have one of my projectors so still have the occasional screening.

One thing to remember with Super 8 is that if you run the camera at 18fps, a 50 ft / 15m cartridge "lasts" for 3:20min and at 24fps, you can shoot for 2:30min so its sensible to shoot in short bursts and let the jump cuts become part of the charm.
 
Yes I reckon to get something that's a bit more than a collection of short bursts, you're going to have to plan out a small action movie... Carl going on a shoot with his LF camera, that sort of thing. Bit of early post-war dress and you should be good to go!
 
Well I just bought a Bolex (@RaglanSurf, got any lenses knocking about? :p) after seeing that processing+telecine costs weren't much more than Super 8 if you send in 400ft at a time, but since you already have access to a camera you should definitely at least run a roll through one. Hopefully Kodak gets its act together and releases that new Super 8 cam soon, since they are planning on doing a processing+scanning package to go with it.
 
skysh4rk said:
Hi @RaglanSurf, I'm not sure I'm quite ready for 16mm yet. What model Bolex is it?
Click to expand...
I'm not sure of exact model and year but its very similar to this https://goo.gl/images/TLH7Fj, numerous lenses, attachments, original leather cases and a very early electric motor.

FruitFlakes said:
Well I just bought a Bolex (@RaglanSurf, got any lenses knocking about? :p) after seeing that processing+telecine costs weren't much more than Super 8 if you send in 400ft at a time, but since you already have access to a camera you should definitely at least run a roll through one. Hopefully Kodak gets its act together and releases that new Super 8 cam soon, since they are planning on doing a processing+scanning package to go with it.
Click to expand...
I do have lenses but if I sell I'll likely just sell as a complete kit but I'll let you know if I decide to split.
 
RaglanSurf said:
I'm not sure of exact model and year but its very similar to this https://goo.gl/images/TLH7Fj, numerous lenses, attachments, original leather cases and a very early electric motor.


I do have lenses but if I sell I'll likely just sell as a complete kit but I'll let you know if I decide to split.
Click to expand...

No worries! I have a lens (a 17-85 zoom) but was looking for a 10mm and a fast 25mm. This site: http://mrgordonnelson.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/article-which-bolex-is-it.html helped me a lot in identifying the various models as they popped up on eBay.
 
Carl Hall said:
.
Does anyone here shoot super 8 or shot it in the last couple of years? Is it worth a roll for the fun factor or am I mental for even thinking about it?
Click to expand...

I have/do! :). (also haven't posted here for months but wanted to reply to this! ha).

I LOVE it. If you don't mind the expense then you should definitely go for it. I have no desire to make video digitally but the charm of Super 8 really has something for me.

Also, your costs are a little on the high side (only a little). I think it worked out at around £63 all in including digitising.

srichards said:
Just use a super 8 video app on your phone and set fire to the money. It will be just the same result ;)
Click to expand...

Ouch! Absolutely not the same result.

StephenM said:
Having seen the (admittedly projected) results from Super-8 I'm not sure you'd find a lot of fun in the end result...
Click to expand...

I definitely disagree. The end result again is all part of the charm. I have looked at the app's for my phone since I started with my Super 8 camera but pointing your phone at something to video is soul destroying. Wielding the Super 8 is cool!

I am currently 3/5 of the way through a cartridge of shooting Manchester since the arena bombing. A bit of an ode to the city if you will. I really need to get out and finish it. So for now, here's one I shot during our trip to Iceland in March 2017. The only editing is to add the music (which I have paid a license for), all the cuts etc were done in camera just by starting/stopping filming. This was my first go so a few things I would do differently next time and I got it back in around May so haven't had any dark nights to project it yet (I go to bed early)! :p

View: https://vimeo.com/215886635
 
Last edited by a moderator:
All my father's super 8 shots were put on one video tape cassette and nice to watch on tv screen, but the problem is, he never told the shop what order to copy the reels so it flits about in years and subject e.g. children from babies to when they were older. :rolleyes:
 
RaglanSurf said:
I did shoot quite a lot of Super 8 back in the day and it still gives me a buzz now when I look back at them, I sold most of my Super 8 cameras when I bought the 16mm kit but do have the urge to buy another when I see a good one crop up on Ebay. I do still have one of my projectors so still have the occasional screening.

One thing to remember with Super 8 is that if you run the camera at 18fps, a 50 ft / 15m cartridge "lasts" for 3:20min and at 24fps, you can shoot for 2:30min so its sensible to shoot in short bursts and let the jump cuts become part of the charm.
Click to expand...

3:20 doesn't sound like a long time, but if you're only doing small bursts of 5 seconds or so at a time, then you that's 28 clips!

At the next F&C meet if you have space in the mini you should bring the projector along and show us some clips :D Bet it looks awesome viewed that way
gazmorton2000 said:
I have/do! :). (also haven't posted here for months but wanted to reply to this! ha).

I LOVE it. If you don't mind the expense then you should definitely go for it. I have no desire to make video digitally but the charm of Super 8 really has something for me.

Also, your costs are a little on the high side (only a little). I think it worked out at around £63 all in including digitising.



Ouch! Absolutely not the same result.



I definitely disagree. The end result again is all part of the charm. I have looked at the app's for my phone since I started with my Super 8 camera but pointing your phone at something to video is soul destroying. Wielding the Super 8 is cool!

I am currently 3/5 of the way through a cartridge of shooting Manchester since the arena bombing. A bit of an ode to the city if you will. I really need to get out and finish it. So for now, here's one I shot during our trip to Iceland in March 2017. The only editing is to add the music (which I have paid a license for), all the cuts etc were done in camera just by starting/stopping filming. This was my first go so a few things I would do differently next time and I got it back in around May so haven't had any dark nights to project it yet (I go to bed early)! :p

View: https://vimeo.com/215886635
Click to expand...


Sweet Jesus, that is a cool video! That's the exact kind of thing that I would look to use it for. On a trip with short bursts to make an overall video of the time away. Yeah, you've definitely sold me on the idea!

I thought that someone on here was doing super 8 recently, but I wasn't sure if it was you. Now that I think about it more I'm sure that I've seen something of yours on Facebook!
 
RaglanSurf said:
A perfect example of how to shoot a roll of Super 8, a thing of beauty :clap::clap::clap:
Click to expand...

Very nice of you to say, thank you. Appreciate that.

Carl Hall said:
Sweet Jesus, that is a cool video! That's the exact kind of thing that I would look to use it for. On a trip with short bursts to make an overall video of the time away. Yeah, you've definitely sold me on the idea!

I thought that someone on here was doing super 8 recently, but I wasn't sure if it was you. Now that I think about it more I'm sure that I've seen something of yours on Facebook!
Click to expand...

Ah thank you, Carl. Thanks for the nice words. I watched it again as I linked it here. Brings back great memories.
 
Oh bloody hell!!!! Now I want to do Super 8 as well.... Must stop looking on here after going to the pub. :banghead: Need to keep away from ebay... :D
 
Andysnap said:
Oh bloody hell!!!! Now I want to do Super 8 as well.... Must stop looking on here after going to the pub. :banghead: Need to keep away from ebay... :D
Click to expand...

What you really want is a nice Olympus trip and an Agfa optima ;)
 
srichards said:
What you really want is a nice Olympus trip and an Agfa optima ;)
Click to expand...

No I dont... ah actually already got a Trip... in red leather, swanky :cool:
 
Andysnap said:
Oh bloody hell!!!! Now I want to do Super 8 as well.... Must stop looking on here after going to the pub. :banghead: Need to keep away from ebay... :D
Click to expand...

Indeed... I'm not getting it other than a bit of fun as a decent digi SLR would give you very good results and surely it would be 35mm instead of the tiny super 8 frames..and one guy has shown one frame from a his digi movie can give a decent pic and large screen tvs have come down in price to see the video. I have my father's films and gave up using the projector as it would jam and burn a hole in the film :eek:
We seem to be going in reverse as in the fifties and sixties, film manufactures and camera makers of lenses were striving for better quality and sharper results esp for Joe public, but now people are playing with Brownies and old cine cameras and loving the results...h'mm all strange to me :D
 
Last edited:
Crumbs this thread takes me back.

My dad got into cine and we (my brother & I) rather took it over..................filming, eagerly waiting for the film to come back, showing using our Eumig projector, editing/splicing, making a larger finished 'production' ~ sigh those were the days.

I think my brother still has all the gear somewhere.

NB he/we started doing this from the mid 60's (before that we all had still cameras ~ I did not nickname BB for nothing ;) )
 
Last edited:
excalibur2 said:
Indeed... I'm not getting it other than a bit of fun as a decent digi SLR would give you very good results and surely it would be 35mm instead of the tiny super 8 frames..and one guy has shown one frame from a his digi movie can give a decent pic and large screen tvs have come down in price to see the video. I have my father's films and gave up using the projector as it would jam and burn a hole in the film :eek:
We seem to be going in reverse as in the fifties and sixties, film manufactures and camera makers of lenses were striving for better quality and sharper results esp for Joe public, but now people are playing with Brownies and old cine cameras and loving the results...h'mm all strange to me :D
Click to expand...

Thats it Brian, a bit of fun. Yes, digital will give a polished, professional product but it has no soul, no character and I think that a lot of people are becoming increasingly disappointed with polished and professional and want something different. And a lot of those people are too young to have used film and want to give it a go, they are not all ancient old crustys like us you know. :D
There are still a lot of Hollywood directors who insist on shooting movies on film.
 
excalibur2 said:
Indeed... I'm not getting it other than a bit of fun as a decent digi SLR would give you very good results and surely it would be 35mm instead of the tiny super 8 frames..and one guy has shown one frame from a his digi movie can give a decent pic and large screen tvs have come down in price to see the video. I have my father's films and gave up using the projector as it would jam and burn a hole in the film :eek:
We seem to be going in reverse as in the fifties and sixties, film manufactures and camera makers of lenses were striving for better quality and sharper results esp for Joe public, but now people are playing with Brownies and old cine cameras and loving the results...h'mm all strange to me :D
Click to expand...

Ah yes, that's what it's all about. Sharper, more resolution, 'better' quality.

Have you ever watched a movie in the cinema projected from 70mm film? It's bloody amazing! Like Andy says above, quite a few big Hollywood directors insist on shooting on film and it's because of this that Kodak are now actually in profit again and can re-release films that we all loved like Ektachrome. Have you seen the new Jennifer Lawrence movie? Shot on 16mm film. It looks beautiful!!

You say that I would get better results shooting video with an SLR that I would my super 8. Define better. What makes it better? Sharper, more resolution, 'perfect' picture? f*** that. Why on Earth would I want to wave a DSLR around on a trip like this making video? I had much more fun with my Super 8. It was a conversation starter with people whom I had never met. It let me connect with the girls I was travelling with and it has provided us with a beautiful memory so that we can not only remember the places we saw and visited, but remember how we felt when I would get the camera out to make a few seconds of video. Choosing my 5 seconds of what and how to expose the film as I couldn't shoot everything to death and then edit afterwards.

I believe film in general saved my photography. I'm not anti-digital by any means, but for ME, shooting it is a bit of a soulless experience in comparison. I got into the gear. I became obsessed with how sharp things were. I made hundreds and thousands of images that were sharp, composed 'correctly' but were devoid of any feeling. It wore me down. One of the reasons I hadn't posted here or on another forum that I used to frequent for months until this thread was because again, I got tired of critique (not just on my photos, but others that I would read) that follows a set of pre-defined guidelines, or simply said how sharp an image was, or how good a lens was. I've left a wedding photography Facebook group because of all the gear discussion about how things were revolutionary and blah, blah, blah. I've seen new members on here come on with ideas of what they wanted to do and get shot down and flamed. It's a sad state of affairs.
 
excalibur2 said:
Indeed... I'm not getting it other than a bit of fun as a decent digi SLR would give you very good results and surely it would be 35mm instead of the tiny super 8 frames..and one guy has shown one frame from a his digi movie can give a decent pic and large screen tvs have come down in price to see the video. I have my father's films and gave up using the projector as it would jam and burn a hole in the film :eek:
We seem to be going in reverse as in the fifties and sixties, film manufactures and camera makers of lenses were striving for better quality and sharper results esp for Joe public, but now people are playing with Brownies and old cine cameras and loving the results...h'mm all strange to me :D
Click to expand...

The only reason is for fun really Brian. The only reason I do anything photography related is because it's fun. Take that out of the equation and there's nothing left so I may as well sell all my gear!

I know the actual results won't be as sharp or clear as a video taken on a modern DSLR, but sharp and clear isn't what I want. In fact, you could argue the same thing about still film photography as well. For every reason that film is "better" than digital, there are ten reasons why digital is better than film. Yet here we all are in the F&C section :D
 
Well guys age makes a difference and my views were shaped because of my early life with crappy cameras (couldn't afford a decent one), mainly B/W films on the cinema and 405 lines B\W tv , and the high cost of doing colour in the dark room so did B\W in the beginning..so for me now I can't go back and it's good quality SLR colour film shots and the easy life to let someone else do dev and scanning. o_O
My father left me his Yashica cine zoom camera, but have no idea where it is and if I find it, someone can have it for a freebie and just pay postage.
 
Mrs Snap said:
Don't give him ideas Carl!! :mad:
Click to expand...

It's OK, I'm sure when he sees how much it would probably cost to deliver half a pint of lager shandy to Snap Acres at 1am in the morning he'll soon go off the idea! ;) :D
 
Last edited:
I have only two things to add to this discussion. Firstly, in 1992 I worked with a chap who bought an 8mm cine-camera because he thought it was "delightfully retro". I have no desire to emulate him but the bugger still owes me £20.

Secondly, can I volunteer to provide any Pathé-style voice-overs you need? If there's one thing I can do, it's a plummy accent. :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top