My Super8 8mm Experiment – Digital Intermediate

Kodak 8mm cartridges

As explained before, I have to choose between various options to digitize my 8mm film. There are some things I can do myself. I could capture the film playing on a projector using a digital camera or I can try out manually scanning every frame with a flatbed scanner and reconstructing the movie from single images. There are many people who tried already, with some nice results. Some even built their own homemade Telecine.

Homemade 8mm Telecine – First Scan from Justin Cary on Vimeo.

Since I don’t have a decent digital video camera or a flatbed scanner, I have to source out. Basically, I can let a service provider capture the film playing on a projector or use a telecine scanner. For best quality a motion picture film scanner can be used to create digital intermediate files. Various service providers are available in the first two categories for 8mm and 16mm. They provide anything from creating DVDs or video files from your source material to restoring damaged films. They charge between 1.50 € and 3.00 € per minute of 8mm film without any cleaning, editing etc. and are somewhat fuzzy or imprecise when it comes to explaining the technologies they are using.

I compiled a list of German services (in alphabetical order, not complete nor evaluated in detail):

8mm-dvd.deallesdigital.orgasdigital.debereit-videofilm.debicker.eudie-filmwerkstatt.dedigitalisieren-kassel.dedigitalspezialist.comdvd-rinkens.defilm-auf-video.defilm-digital.defilm-gestaltung.defilm-retter.defilme-sicher.defilmaufdigital.defilmstube-berlin.comfilmaxx.defotoplus-eschborn.defrank-medienservice.dehs-filmtransfer.dehyperworx.dejensen-digital-service.demedia-schmid.demedienservice-marzahn.demuvig.dephoto-porst-hamburg.dephotostudio.deRetroCut.de,retrofilms.des8digital.descancorner.deschmalfilm-archiv.deschmalfilmdigital.destudio-dvd.desuper8-to-dvd.deudo-schmittnagel.devideooncd.de

Service providers that stand out, are retrofilms.de and schmalfilm-archiv.de. Booth seem to offer frame-by-frame scanning and are able to provide the single image files with a resolution of 2K rather than a video file.

Over the next weeks, I might try them out and will sum up the results.

8mm - developed 8mm film material - 1
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