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Author
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Topic: Fuji P2 Single 8 Camera; thoughts?
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Joerg Polzfusz
Jedi Master Film Handler
Posts: 815
From: Berlin, Germany, Europe, Earth, Solar System
Registered: Apr 2006
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posted June 16, 2008 04:53 AM
Hi,
the camera is great for vacations, trips, ... as it's very small and weights nearly nothing (even with batteries and film). As it's "stripped to the bone", batteries will last very long. E.g. there's no motor-zoom that'll "waste" energy. And there's nearly nothing that can get broken. ![[Wink]](wink.gif)
BTW: This camera only needs two 1.5V AA batteries = no coin cells.
It works out of your pocket as you only have to switch it on - no need to worry about focus or zoom.
So far I've shot 10 carts Fujichrome R25(N) and one cart Cinevia 50D (the old one that was notched as 50ASA) with my P2 and I'm very pleased with the results: Image is very stable. Auto exposure works fine. And to my surprise the focus is always okay: as long as it's sunny everything from 2m to infinity is within focus, when it's a little bit cloudy the focus range starts at approx. 4m. So there's nearly nothing that can go wrong when shooting the old "home movie"-style. (Using this camera for a "real" movie, e.g. for shooting titles, scenes that would require stop-motion, focus-pull, ... is senseless.)
Problems:
* Camera only runs at 18fps.
* Auto-Exposure is not "TTL" and can't be switched to manual. As a result of this "not TTL" you wouldn't notice when you cover the exposure-meter by mistake. But as the camera hasn't got a zoom, there's no need to fiddle around near the exposure-meter, so there's very, very little chance to accidentally cover it. As another result of this "not TTL" you'll need special filters that'll cover both lenses to shoot in daylight with tungsten-balanced films or vice versa. Unfortunately these filters are very hard to find - even on eBay.
* no rewind or any other advanced features
* It's main drawback is the fact that Fuji has stopped the production of the Fujichrome RT200N/R25N. So the Fujichrome RT200N/R25N is only sold while the stock lasts ( Fuji's forecast: RT200N = at least until 2010, R25N = at least until 2012; Fuji will provide processing and post-striping at least one year longer than that, most likely even two.) Of course there are alternatives like the Cinevia- or Retro-X-films. But these alternatives are shorter (12m film in the 15m cart) and sometimes cause problems, e.g. the film might get stuck or become jittery. (On the other hand: Retro8 keeps improving these films and the so number of troubles reported on the various boards is decreasing. So there's hope that the alternatives will be trouble-free when the Fujichrome is gone.)
In other words: When you need a reliable 18fps-only-camera where nothing can go wrong, take it (especially as it can be found on ebay very cheap).
Jörg
BTW: I've also got a "P2 Zoom". But the zoom makes the camera twice as bulky. And as the zoom-range is very limited, I only use the "non-zoom" P2.
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Mark Norton
Master Film Handler
Posts: 330
From: Hampton Hill, Middlesex, U.K.
Registered: Feb 2004
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posted June 19, 2008 04:32 AM
Hi Simon,
P2 and the P2 Zoom are the cameras I shoot most of my film with. Both work well in low light, fit in you pocket and because they are so easy and fast to use, just point and shoot, I've got more confident in capturing candid shots. Projected picture quality has been superb with single 8 cineva and more of a retro look with the R25 and 200.
The light meter on the side of the P2 is very useful, it's a shame this was not carried over to the P2 Zoom.
Wittner do prepaid envelopes for the cineva they sell, similar to the K40 envelopes of old.
My top end camera is my Nizo Professional, but i'll always carry one of these little fuji cameras loaded with cineva because it can be edited in with the super 8 stocks I run in the Nizo.
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