Kodak Wants to Revive Super 8mm Film with a New Camera2 min read
Reading Time: 2 minutesRemember Super 8mm film?
While some of you are still shooting a few rolls here and there, the format that was once synonymous with home movies might just be making a comeback 50 years after Kodak made their first camera. With analog formats getting a new lease on life lately, including film, Kodak is pushing forward with a brand new Super 8mm camera – one that combines analog film with the ease of shooting on digital, like the addition of a flip out LCD screen for shooting (rather than an optical viewfinder), and other digital connections on the back. According to the Wall Street Journal, this model will cost between $400 and $750, but a much cheaper model will be coming out in 2017:
The first new Super 8, expected to arrive in a limited-edition version in the fall of 2016, was conceived with help from the industrial designer Yves Behar. It is likely to cost between $400 to $750, Mr. Clarke estimated. Processing the film should cost $50 to $75 a cartridge, he said.
Specifications
Film Gauge: Super 8 (Extended Max-8 Gauge)
Film Load: Kodak Cartridges with 50ft (15m)
Variable Speed (9, 12, 18, 24, 25 fps) all with Crystal Sync
Mount: C-Mount
Fixed Ricoh 6mm 1.2, Optional 8-48mm Zoom Lens
Manual Focus and Iris
Viewfinder: 3.5″ Display with Standard Definition Input & Swivels +/- 45 Degrees
Exposure Control: Built-in Light Meter for Supported Speeds of All Kodak Film Types, Manual Speed/Iris Settings
Integrated Battery and Charger via Standard USB Wall Adapter
Integrated Microphone
Control Panel: Via 3.5″ TFT LCD
Settings: Jog Wheel As User Interface
Price: First Limited Edition – $400 – $750, Cheap Version Coming Later
The company has certainly seen a steady stream of filmmakers choose film over the last few years since they left bankruptcy, but this has mostly been at the high end with the much more expensive 35mm or crazy-expensive 65mm (in the case of IMAX and filmmakers like Quention Tarantino). Super 8mm film doesn’t quite give you the running time of those formats based on the cartridge system (a 50 foot cartridge is only around 2.5 minutes), but for most people just trying to experiment with the format this won’t be a problem, especially since filmmakers have been shooting on wind-up Bolex 16mm cameras that only give you around 30 seconds maximum per shot.
via: No Film School
Image Credit: Kodak
