Before 1980, most home movies were shot on Super-8mm and Regular 8mm film. Let's Explore how 25 years later Super-8 Filmmaking is still popular in the Digital Age.

The image of the Letter E located to the upper right of this review page was filmed with a Super-8 film Camera. While some may think these kind of images are only possible with digital cameras or with photoshop, they are just as fun to shoot on film and can actually be more cost effective to shoot as well. I get more satisfaction being outdoors figuring out how to create a shot like the letter E on Super-8 film than having a computer program render it for me while I sit like a couch potato nearby. Most people never discover just what can be done with a Super-8 film camera from a creative and artistic point of view because they mistakenly think that everything is created digitally nowadays.

Super-8 Cameras aren't affected by the video resolution wars. In the last 25 years, you could have easily purchased 5 or 6 video cameras, each a different video format. You also could have purchased one Super-8 camera that would still offer excellent quality 25 years later. Super-8 film, even though it is only 1/12th the size of 35mm film, still offers very nice resolution and retains the look of film even when it has been transferred to either DVD or videotape.

Who still uses Super-8 cameras? Some beginning Film Students still use Super-8 cameras. Digital artists looking to break out of the digital video look will use Super-8 film. Low Budget feature film productions sometimes will use Super-8. Short Films can be shot on Super-8. Music Videos thrive on the Super-8 look. I enjoy shooting time-lapse with my Super-8 cameras. I also enjoy shooting single frame and time-exposure productions as well. Slow motion cinematography is also possible with many Super-8 cameras.

Super-8 Camera manufacturers stopped making super-8 cameras around 1980 so most Super-8 Film Cameras are at least 28 years old. French and Russian camera manufacturers made Super-8 cameras into the 90's. The reason camera manufacturers stopped making super-8 cameras was because they were making millions of super-8 cameras every year and realized that the public would prefer videotape and it's 2 hour recording time. It had nothing to do with quality and everything to do video being easier to use. Back in the 70's, new super-8 cameras cost anywhere from 99 dollars to 999 dollars. Nowadays the winning auction prices for Super-8 cameras on eBay can vary from as little as $9.99 to almost a thousand dollars, depending on the condition of the super-8 camera and how popular it has become. The price you pay for a Super-8 camera in the digital age will usually be between 10 dollars to 500 dollars, many decent Super-8 Film Cameras still sell for under a hundred dollars.

As you can see, Super-8 cameras can be an incredible bargain as long as the Super-8 film camera is working properly. Don't assume that any super-8 camera with a high starting bid price is automatically a good camera. If you start to notice that the same brand of Super-8 camera always sells for more money than most other brands, there's probably a logical reason for that. Some lesser known super-8 cameras may actually be very undervalued when compared to what the most popular super-8 cameras sell for.

Ironically, FINDING a facility to repair or properly service a Super-8 camera may prove to be a bigger issue than the actual repair cost.

Perhaps between 1/5 to 1/3 of all Super-8 cameras sold on eBay may not be fully functional and may need servicing or repair. However, some eBay sellers are very confident that their cameras work fine and will state so in their auction. Some Super-8 cameras may not be fully functional but may still be useable anyways! The one thing to avoid however is operating a squeaky super-8 camera as that may mean the camera's, exposure, zoom, or film advance motor lens is in desperate need of lubrication and you could be burning out the camera prematurely if you keep using it as is.

It is possible that one could buy a Super-8 camera for 10 dollars, 50 dollars, a 100 dollars or more on eBay and then discover that it needs the film advance motor lubricated or the exposure meter serviced and that this repair will cost more than the camera auction price.

The philosophical roadblock that many people run into when it comes to having a Super-8 camera repaired or serviced is, "I only paid 50 dollars for the camera, therefore I should never pay more than 50 dollars for the repair". This is flawed logic.

If you are having trouble with the idea that you could spend more money on a repair or servicing than the purchase price of your Super-8 camera, just consider that the winning auction price in which the seller has disclosed possible problems with the camera upfront will automatically come with a lower winning auction amount. The lower winning bid price means you have some leeway to apply the savings towards the repair of the super-8 camera. Sellers who are honest and disclose any problems with the camera they are selling can sometimes get hammered by a low winning auction price. A few sellers may simply state they did not test the camera which keeps them from discovering or disclosing problems, lol, or they may really not know how the thing works and can't effectively test it! Stating a camera is untested sometimes results in a higher winning bid than another seller who may have taken the time to evaluate the camera and state what is wrong with the camera.

Once you are ready to start filming, you will be pleasantly surprised to learn that In the year 2007, there are MORE Super-8 film stocks available then 15 years ago! Yes, Kodak still makes Super-8 movie film including (2) Black and White reversal film stocks, (1) color reversal film stock, and (2) color negative film stocks. All of Kodaks Super-8, 16mm and 35mm film stocks can be purchased via Kodak's 800 number, 1-800-621-FILM (3456). All Kodak Super-8 film stocks can be processed in one days time if the lab you are using gets enough orders to justify a same day processing run.

Companies such as Spectra Film and Video of North Hollywood, California actually loads both Kodak Ektachrome 100D and Fuji Velvia into Super-8 Cartridges and 16mm as well. In Europe, Wittner-kinotechnik also loads super-8 film as well.

In 2005, Kodak stopped making Kodachrome 40 Super-8 film and introduced Ektachrome 64T as its replacement. Some have complained that Ektachrome 64T film will not work properly in some Super-8 cameras. Let me correct that slight misperception. All Super-8 film stocks will work in all Super-8 cameras. The issue with Ektachrome 64T is that some Super-8 camera's automatic exposure systems will misread the ASA setting of the Ektachrome 64T cartridge which might result in an improper automatic exposure result.

Please remember that as long as a Super-8 camera has a properly working automatic exposure meter and a manual exposure meter, any incorrect automatic exposure setting can easily be corrected by switching to the manual exposure mode and adding an exposure "offset" to the f-stop setting.

The word "Offset" simply means that if the super-8 camera's automatic exposure system always underexposes Ektachrome 64T by one f-stop, you simply switch from automatic exposure to manual exposure mode and turn a manual exposure dial that moves the f-stop meter "plus one" f-stop. Yes, it's that easy, as long as the super-8 camera has a properly functioning automatic and manual exposure option. Once one begins to understand and correctly set f-stops via the manual exposure mode, acceptable film exposures should result. Most Super-8 cameras tend to give more accurate automatic exposure readings when the background is not brighter than the foreground, but that does not mean you should avoid shooting certain scenes because of this, it's just information I am sharing.

I believe it's harder to learn useful camera exposure skills when one is using an "automatic exposure only" type of super-8 camera. I can only recommend an automatic-exposure only Super-8 camera if it is inexpensive and deemed better than having no super-8 camera at all. An automatic exposure only Super-8 camera can sometimes get better exposures than a Super-8 camera that has been improperly exposed in the manual exposure mode. Steadicam Super-8 shots can sometimes benefit from using an automatic exposure camera if the shot will go from brighter areas to shadowy darker areas. At other times a super-8 camera with a manual exposure mode might provide a more stable overall exposure between brightness and darkness during the steadicam take.

Super-8 Sound film is no longer made. If a Super-8 camera is called a "sound" camera it means it has a bigger film chamber to accommodate the larger Super-8 Sound Film cartridges. Inside the larger Super-8 sound camera you will find a sound record head which the silent cameras do not have. A Sound Super-8 camera usually requires that the camera has devoted some of the camera switches and dials to sound recording functions whereas a silent super camera can devote all of its circuitry to offering more varied frames per second filming modes. However, because Super-8 Sound Cameras were also some of the last Super-8 Cameras ever made they may be the most reliable because they used the most up to date electronics and are the "youngest" super-8 cameras on the market. The Canon 814 XL S and 1014 XL S are a perfect example of a Super-8 Sound Camera that was able to retain all of the options found on the previous silent versions while still allowing for the recording of sound onto sound film (however the slow motion speed isn't as fast as on the sound camera). Usually sound film cameras will not have a fast of a slow motion function as the silent cameras have.

If you buy a Sound Super-8 Camera, don't buy it because it is a sound super-8 camera, buy it because it has other Super-8 camera options that you really want such as the camera has an excellent reputation, the owner has stated the camera is in really good condition, it is an "XL" type of camera which usually means up to one additional f-stop of increased sensitivity to light versus the Non-XL cameras, or because you want to record sound scenes and Super-8 Sound cameras should run quieter than non sound cameras.

The Difference between a Non XL S and an XL S super-8 cameras has to do with the age of the camera and the maximum f-stop range opening. Super-8 Non XL cameras are older than Super-8 XL or XL S cameras and usually have a maxium opening of around f 1.8. That does not mean the non XL cameras are inferior, it just means they are older cameras that are slightly less light sensitve in low light situations. Super-8 XL or XLS cameras are "newer" cameras that usually have between an f 1.4 to f 1.2 maximum lens stop opening. XL S actually has two meanings, it may mean that the camera is capable of sound recording, or XL S could be refering to the shutter of the camera as having a wider angle opening as compared to a Non XLS camera.

I would estimate that there is about a one f-stop difference between the older Non XL S super-8 cameras and the newer XL S Super-8 cameras. The additional f-stop of sensitivity is a result of a 200-220 degree shutter on an XLS camera versus a 150 to 180 degree shutter on an XL camera PLUS the 1.2 to 1.4 maximum lens stop opening versus an f 1.8. But this one extra f-stop of light only matters in very low light situations. The new Kodak Vision2 Negative Film Stocks rated at 200T and 500T ASA help make the older XL Super-8 cameras more useable than ever before.

I recommend researching what Super-8 is all about about before bidding on a Super-8 camera. I have set up several links on my About Me Page to help get you started.

Here are some quickie learning tips about what the Super-8 camera model numbers usually mean.

Many times, either the first two numbers or the last two numbers of a super-8 camera model number refer to the zoom ratio or the telephoto capability of the camera, or the widest f-stop opening. Here are some examples of Super-8 model numbers with an explanation of what the camera model numbers mean.

Example: Nizo 560. This model means the lens can zoom all the way to 56mm. Usually that means around a 7-56mm zoom range, or an 8-1 zoom ratio. It appears that older Nizo model numbers had two numbers in the model number (56 or 80), then when a later Nizo model came out, they called it a 560 or an 800 or an 801, Eventually, Nizo went to four digit model numbers for their super quiet sound Super-8 cameras. Most if not all 3 digit Nizo model numbers offer time-exposure functions. I think that two digit Nizo cameras with the model number of 80 may also offer time-exposure, but I am not certain. Nizo also made some very small compact super-8 cameras that also had decent zoom ratios on them, I think they had model numbers like Nizo 136 or Nizo 148. In this instance the 36 probably means 36mm as the most the camera will zoom to, and the 48 means it will zoom to 48mm.

Example: Nizo 6080. Zoom range goes all the way from 6 to 80. The wide angle is 6mm, making the zoom ratio just over 13-1.

Example: Elmo 1012S-XL. 10 to 1 zoom ratio, f1.2 maximum lens stop opening, "S" stands for Sound, XL for either "existing light" or extra large shutter angle of 220 degrees per frame. The larger the shutter angle is the more light is let in per each super–8 frame. Some people like a smaller shutter angle because it can make the picture look sharper because there is less chance of blurring since the shutter is open for a shorter duration, others prefer a larger shuttle angle because it lets more light in, which can be really important in low light situations. A small number of cameras had a switch so one could switch between a larger shutter angle or a narrower shutter angle.

Example: Canon 814XL-S. 8 to 1 zoom ratio, 1.4 maximum f-stop opening, XL means either existing light or 220 degree shutter, S means it's a sound camera.

Example: Canon 514XL. 5 to 1 zoom ratiio, f 1.4 maximum f-stop opening, XL means either existing light or extra long shutter of 220 degrees.

Example: Minolta XL 64 Sound 6 - 1 zoom ratio, the 4 = f1.4 maximum f-stop opening, XL = also known as existing light, sound means it can accommodate a sound film cartridge and record sound, although sound cartridges are no longer made.

Example: Nikon R8 8-1 zoom ratio, lol, I don't know what the R means although the camera is known for having a second film claw and very good film registration.

Example: Sankyo CM-600 8-48mm lens, 6-1 zoom ratio, I don't know what the CM means, sorry.

Example: Yashica Electro 8 LD-4 9-36mm lens = 4-1 zoom, the number 8 might just refer to the 8mm or Super-8mm format. The camera does have an f 1.8 maximum f-stop opening so the 8 might mean f1.8 maximum opening. There is also a Yashica Electro 8 LD-4 XL, which probably means it has either an f 1.4 or f 1.2 maximum f-stop opening because of the XL designation.

Example: Bauer A 512 12 to 1 zoom - WOW! (most large lens super-8 cameras have anywhere from a 6-1 to 10-1 zoom range, anything above that is very rare). I don't know what the 5 means, however the camera does have a 54 frame slow motion speed function so maybe that is what the 5 means??? The A might mean automatic. There was also a Bauer 508 and there might have been a third model as well and each of these cameras have an automatic time-exposure function, maybe that is where the "A" comes from.

Example: Chinon 80 SMR Pacific 8-1 zoom ratio, SMR might mean Sound Model Recorder??? Pacific might mean that the camera is peacefully quiet like the Pacific Ocean, meaning the camera won't make a lot of noise for the microphone to pick up as background sound.

Example: Cosina HDL-675 6-1 zoom ratio, made in 1975. Perhaps one of the few cameras that uses the date it was released in it's model number???

Example: Eumig 800 series Any model number in the 800's, EXCEPT for 800, will do time-exposure. The 880 has an 8-1 zoom, the 860 has a 6-1 zoom, the 831 has a 3-1 zoom.

Example: Elmo Super-110 This camera has a 10-1 zoom lens, I don't know what the first 1 means.

Example: Beaulieu 1008 through 7008 Basically, Beaulieu added a one to the first number of the model number everytime they issued a new camera. So 1008 was the first model, then the 2008, and so on. The 4008 line is recognized as the most popular retro of the Beaulieu's, the 7008 is considered the best "digital" version of the Beaulieu's since it had a digital frame counter and could do crystal sync if one had the crystal sync mod. Most, or perhaps all of the Beaulieus had removable lenses.

Good Luck on your Super-8 Quest. I find Super-8 cameras are just as interesting to use as digital video cameras, but that is something you can only appreciate once you learn about Super-8 time-lapse, time-exposure, single frame, slow motion, and the various super-8 film stocks that are still available and the distinctive looks each film stock creates. I believe in this day and age of digital that one can own and use BOTH Digital Video cameras AND Super-8 film cameras as well.

If you decide you want to make a Feature Film on Super-8, you MUST at the very least OWN TWO working IDENTICAL Super-8 cameras, even three would not be a bad idea. The reason for this is if your primary super-8 camera develops a problem, there is a chance you may not be able to get it serviced either in a timely manner or serviced at all! If your super-8 camera is making loud sounds, it needs a qualified technician to lubricate it, and these technicians are hard to find.

As Crazy as it sounds, if one actually shot a low budget feature film in Super-8 and added a well crafted sound track, the probability of selling it to a distributor is just as likely if not moreso than if one were to shoot on mini-dv. This statement is not made to diminish the impact of DV. Overall, more DV projects will get sold than Super-8 projects, but the PERCENTAGE of projects that will eventually sell is usually higher when one shoots on film versus when one shoots on video. The advantages to shooting on DV include that it can be less expensive because videotape is cheaper to shoot than film and sound can be directly recorded onto the videotape. The advantage of shooting on film is if the film project is actually finished, one should have a greater chance of a distribution deal. As you can see, both film and digital video formats each have their own advantages.

It probably would be fair to say that shooting on DV is easier and less expensive than shooting on film; after one has spent a few thousand dollars on the digital camera. If one successfully completes a Super-8 film, the opportunity to sell it will be there. In recent years Super-8 films have been screened as finalists at both Sundance and Cannes. In 2005 a Super-8 entry, "The Man Who Met Himself" beat out over 2,000 other entries to be one of 9 finalists for the Cannes short film award!

When it comes to home movies, the resolution of Super-8 film is superior to Vhs, so if you have already transferred your own super-8 and regular 8 family home movies to VHS, do not throw away your original home movie film! Even if you have transferred your home movies to DVD, DO NOT throw away your home movies as DVD duplication technology is very fragile and will not last as long as properly stored film will. DVD is a wonderful playback format and easy to use. DVD duplication is both a poor archival and editing format for transferring your home movie film to BUT it is an excellent way to view your home movies and in the process save your actual original film from the wear and tear of a rarely used film projector.