B&W Super 8 Movie Film?

ChristopherCoy · May 21, 2020

I was just watching the Robert Frank documentary, and something triggered the thought about the old 8mm camera that my mother had. It's my earliest memories of taking pictures. I remember chasing my neighborhood friend around with the camera shooting "movies" of him. My mom had to hide it from me because I would "waste" film. Later we had a Ricoh 35mm.

I looked on Freestyle and was surprised to find out that you could get B&W Super 8 film.

My first question is are there any labs that do the D-94A process for these films?

And my second question is, what are the "better" quality cameras to shoot this with? The bay shows a multitude of brands and qualities.

Kino · May 21, 2020

Yes, there are a few labs that will process this film.

http://www.cinelab.com/8mm.html
https://www.spectrafilmandvideo.com/
http://www.yalefilmandvideo.com/filmprocessing8mm.php

Very easy to find via Google search...

As for a good quality camera, it depends on what you mean by that.

The Minolta XL 401 is a great, small, inexpensive camera that has a built-in intervalometer for time lapse and has a good lens.

As for high-end cameras, you can pay just about anything you want for high-end Minolta, Canon, Nizo or other major brand cameras.

I have a Minolta Autopak-8 D10 that is the Mercedes of Minolta Super 8mm cameas with only the D12 being supposedly better. The all-black D12 has a 12 to 1 Macro Zoom Rokkor 1.8 / 6.5 - 78 mm. The two-tone D10 is silver and black and comes with a non-macro 10-1 Zoom Rokkor 1.8 / 7 - 70 mm, but the D10's lens is reputed to be sharper than the D12.

http://super8wiki.com/index.php/Minolta_Autopak-8_D_10

I have shot with Beaulieus, Canons, Minoltas, Nizos, Bauer and many other Super 8 cameras and all are good performers but some are better than others.

Myself, I prefer Minolta.

PS: the Nikon R10 is great too! http://super8wiki.com/index.php/Nikon_R_10_Super

Dan Fromm · May 21, 2020

I had a Nikon R10, returned it to the seller because its lens f/stops at f/1.4, t/stops at perhaps t/3.5. It is a camera for high noon ... But if you must do in-camera dissolves it and the smaller R8 are really useful.

I've had three Beaulieus. 4008ZM with Angenieux 8-64/1.9, 4008ZM2 with Schneider 6-66/1.8, 5008S-MS with Schneider 6-70/1.4. Still have the last two. Beautiful artifacts that reek of quality but unfortunately quite fragile so to be avoided.

I still have a small heap of Canon 310XLs, Despicable little things that don't tell the user what they're doing and that have to be focused by guess or tape measure. That said, within their limits -- 8.5-25.5/1.0, 18 fps -- they've given me better footage than any of my other S8 cameras.

Kino · May 21, 2020

Dan Fromm said:
I had a Nikon R10, returned it to the seller because its lens f/stops at f/1.4, t/stops at perhaps t/3.5. It is a camera for high noon ...

Yes, I wonder how many people who have never shot motion picture film, but have only shot video understand that you can't just crank-up the gain on a film camera and are surprised at the result when shooting in low light situations.

There's a reason grip trucks have thousands of pounds of lighting tucked away in their internals...

Dan Fromm · May 21, 2020

Kino said:
Yes, I wonder how many people who have never shot motion picture film, but have only shot video understand that you can't just crank-up the gain on a film camera and are surprised at the result when shooting in low light situations.

That's where the 310XL really stands out. Great camera, but not pleasant to use, if you know what I mean.

choiliefan · May 22, 2020

I remember ads for a Kodak super-8 which could shoot in candle-lit conditions.
Unfortunately, can't recall the model or what quality it delivered.

AgX · May 22, 2020

There was a time when "XL" cameras were en vogue at manufacturers. These had
-) fast lenses
-) high eposure-time/transport-time ratio
thus yielding higher low-light capability.

guangong · May 22, 2020

I do my own processing for Super8 BW and labs for 16mm. All a question of taste. I like BW, but prefer in 16 mm. As for cameras, I have several Nizo, Beaulieu and a Leicina as well as the little Canon 310. Another quality camera was made by Bauer. Much of the choice depends upon how comfortable the camera feels in your hands. That was the reason for my choices. Yours could be different. The key reason for choosing a Super8 camera is stability of the gate. Leicina wins hands down, followed closely by my other two choices. Nikon, Canon, and Bauer are also known for image stability.
Because comfort in hands is so important, I would buy from reputable dealer with unconditional return policy. A good place to start would be DuAll camera in NYC. Primarily a rental and repair house, they are quite knowledgeable about Super8 cameras and usually have some available for sale. They are also generous with info.

EarlJam · May 22, 2020

I used a Bolex 155 in the early/mid 70s and shot a fair amount of both Plus-X and Tri-X reversal. Of the two, I preferred Tri-X, which gave gorgeous results. Re sources for film and equipment, Chambless Cine is also a good resource: http://www.chamblesscineequip.com/Default.htm

perkeleellinen · May 25, 2020

A few things to bear in mind:

Ensure you get a film tested camera from a reputable dealer; many of these cameras have spent decades in lofts before being put on ebay. Super 8 is so expensive even a test will cost you $100 (film, dev, telecine)
Many cameras, even high-end cameras can only meter for K40, ensure your camera can detect modern film stock
Some cameras have a separate light meter battery that was often a mercury cell
Ensure the aperture can close to f32, f16 will not cut it in bright daylight with fast (100asa +) film
Some cameras do not have TTL metering so you can't use ND filters

guangong · May 25, 2020

Another very nice camera was made by Zeiss Ikon. Not very common in North America. Like much from Zeiss, cost about the equivalent of a very nice car when new. Best lens among all mentioned above and deceptively simple to operate. Drawback: Impossible to get repaired. I was taken to the cleaners by a movie camera repairman in upstate NY.

B&W Super 8 Movie Film?

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