SUPER 8 DILEMNA!
SUPER 8 DILEMNA!- special effects and filmmaking
ok, i'm facing a crisis here... my super 8 camera's aperture doesn't seem to work anymore. the needle in the viewfinder won't move anymore, so i have no clue what f-stop i'm setting it to, and auto doesn't work either. or rather, the needle won't move as i change the setting. i know the needle itself isn't broken because if i shake the camera, the needle shakes, then stops in it's original position. i know it's not the batteries because i put in brand new ones. and yet the battery tester shows nothing. and i know the battery tester's good because all the AA batteries read full. i'm going on a 4 week vacation tonight and won't be able to check this post after tonight, and i'm supposed to shoot a movie while i'm gone, so i need a quick answer! i don't want to go back to video!
on, and i have a canon super 8 autozoom 518.
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Monkey Sea Entertainment
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Moviemakers Portal (moviemaking-only search engine)
[This message has been edited by sketchman (edited 12-23-2000).]
(better late than never?)
Some super 8 cameras had a separate battery compartment for their light meters. It's possible that the watch-like cell for that has finally petered out- look for other compartments and replace what needs replacing. If there is no such compartment, try this.
F 2 (I think) is used for dark conditions- okay, not dark, but cloudy.
F 5.6 is for ideal conditions.
F 8 to 16 (I think) is for overly bright conditions (sun or bright lights right in the shot)
F 4 and F 6 are for conditions in between.
I may have the 2 and 8/16 transposed, it's been so ling since I used manual aperature I'm not sure- both my super 8's have automatic and so does my 35mm SLR still unit.
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Primitive Pictures
When I got my Beaulieu the needle had fallen out of view and could only be seen with the camera inverted, where it would fall halfway back into sight. I took off the eyepeice and manipulated the needle to the top position. It's worked fine ever since, and I'm not even really sure what I did. Not that you should do that, but hey, it worked for me.
Oh no! You mean to tell me you guys acually use those built in lightmeters! Oh no no no! My friends, you must stop using those this instant. Save up a little money and go out and buy yourself a lightmeter AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! Christmas is over fellas, you lost that chance! Oh man...
Anyway, built in lightmeter's do save time if your just messing around and they are usually the first things to go as well. I suggest bringing with an SLR still camera if you have one and setting the shutter speed to the same speed as your 8mm camera. Remember the equation: 1/fpsx2 ex. 1/18x2 = 1/36 sec. Use the SLR's lightmeter to take readings (make sure the film speed is the same) and adjust accordingly. You'll be good to go! (at least closer than guessing) And buy yourself a lightmeter, they're not that expensive. I thought for sure you would have one Sketchman.
I only use the needle as a charge indicator. Otherwise, it's pretty easy to ignore.
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