Where do you begin - new 8mm camera wanted

[Jeremy Rundle]

I may.............. may buy a super 8mm camera, I used to have years ago a Sankyo XL320, suited us fine.

Now I am considering getting and using a replacement.

£100-150 is that wishful thinking

Thanks

Canon, Sankyo, Sanyo ???

I am NOT new to ebay so, taking in to account (1) I am not after a £1000 camera and (2) I just want one that works, are the "Perfect working condition" £50-60 Eumig etc ok, of course I will run a film through it and return if not. After all for a rare occasional camera

[Nick Regan]

8 mm or Super 8?

I have a tidy Ikon Movikon 8B, its a movie camera of fairly unusual design. The film is twisted 90 degrees, as the film plane is perpendicular to where it normally would be. This gives the camera a distinctive look, the lens being located on what would be the side of a normal movie camera. As a business it is sold as tested and woring in its original box and case with all that implies.

Let me know if it intrests?

Nick

[Gary Sayers]

First super 8 camera that I had was a Sankyo CM 400 in the 1970s. This produced excellent results. I moved on to sound a few years later with the Sankyo XL 620 supertronic. This really was an all singing and dancing machine, with automatic lap dissolves, slow motion and time lapse. It cost a small fortune and I stupidly sold this in the mid 1980s for £50.
In the early 1990s, I bought a second hand Eumig mini. It's fairly basic, with just a small manual zoom but I have been very, very pleased with the results. The Eumig mini sells for peanuts on ebay and the CM 400s are quite cheap too.

[Graham Ritchie]

Jeremy

It might pay to check with Facebook pages that deal directly with Super 8 film making in todays world. The reason I say this, is that many Super 8 cameras have given up working to to old electronics. The folk that still use Super 8 cameras and films are the best to look for advice. Another thing is even if a camera still works, can it recognize for metering present film stock?. Those are the kind of questions they will be able to help you with.

Hope this helps

[Jeremy Rundle]

8 mm or Super 8?

I have a tidy Ikon Movikon 8B, its a movie camera of fairly unusual design. The film is twisted 90 degrees, as the film plane is perpendicular to where it normally would be. This gives the camera a distinctive look, the lens being located on what would be the side of a normal movie camera. As a business it is sold as tested and woring in its original box and case with all that implies.

Let me know if it intrests?

Nick

Hardly super 8 is it ? I asked about three super 8 cameras, thanks

[Shane C. Collins]

As Graham pointed out there are many Super 8 shooters around the world who are active on Facebook. I am a member of one such group on Facebook simply called Super 8mm. There are about 11,000 members. I currently shoot all my home movies on Kodak's current stock, Ektachrome 100D color reversal (7294). It's a great film that will give you that classic Super 8 look projected. It's probably the best color reversal to date. It's modern formula provides very sharp images with low grain, and nice contrasts. It's only negative is the fact it's rated as 100 ASA but seems to expose better between 64-80 ASA. Another words it needs a bit more light to look it's best on screen. I've been shooting this stock since Kodak released it back in 2018. I've probably shot 10 or so rolls since then. Price wise, one cart will set you back about $42 dollars. I have my films processed at Dwayne's Photo for $12 a cart which is a good price these days.

My cameras of choice include a Minolta Autopak 8 D6, Yashica Sound 50 XL, and just recently purchased a Minolta XL400. I can tell you that I prefer to use cameras that allow you to increase the exposure using a back light function. This sets the camera up to expose with one f-stop more light. So if you were shooting a film, and the camera showed an f-stop of say 16, you would then increase the exposure by one to f-stop 11. I've been shooting Ektachrome this way for some time now. When the films come back they look perfectly exposed on screen.

If you decide to shoot Super 8 it can be expensive with today's prices. The cost of film, plus processing has doubled since I first started shooting Super 8 back in 2005. However, film is much nicer in most situations compared to digital. I look at it from the standpoint of preserving family, and friends on a format that will survive many decades if properly stored. Plus it's also the experience one has when you see these films on the big screen, and hearing the sound of the projector in the background. I make it a point to show my films to family every few years. We set up the screen, projector, and then watch the movies. Their smiles, and laughter says it all.

My recommendation is to find a camera that offers a few options but it easy to use. The Minolta XL400 I mentioned above is one such camera. It's a nice small sized camera. It's weight is perfect for a grab and go option of filming. The Yashica Sound 50XL I also mentioned is much larger but offers some really unique options, and because of it's larger size allows one to have extremely stable images. That's the plus with a larger camera. Super 8 looks best when it's not shaky on screen. The current digital transfers I've seen on YouTube these days leave a lot to be desired. The camera users seem to overuse zooming with lots of shakiness, and panning. That's a no no with this small format LOL. But to each his own, and that's the great thing about filming. There are different styles, and techniques one can use. I just prefer to make Super 8 look it's best. If you have any questions about filmstock or cameras let me know.