Super 8 - Is It Great?

I don’t know yet…

I spent an afternoon walking around Park City, Utah with a Kodak Instamatic M8 Super 8 movie camera* from about 1967.

Some people stopped to talk to me about this crazy thing!

“Is that a Super 8 camera? Cool!”

“I remember those!”

“I want to get one!”

It’s a fun way to talk film, in this case movie film, with total strangers.

Yes, you can still get new Super 8 film cartridges.

Yes, I think mine works but this is the first time I tried it. The camera turns the motor on and off, and the film advances. The zoom seems smooth.

I have no idea what the results will be until I have it developed and scanned.

To end up with a digital video is kind of crazy expensive. The cost of film, develop, and scan, plus shipping, is probably over $100.

That gets about 3 minutes of no sound (and in this case black and white) analog converted to digital video you can edit on your computer.

I have some fun plans for this if it looks any good. It will be a while before it is ready to show.

*I know you don’t care, but…

Kodak Instamatic M8

production: 1966-1968

silent Super 8 cartridge

lens: Kodak Zoom

f: 1.8

9-45 mm

zooming ratio: 5x

focusing: manual

zooming: manual