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DIY Super 8 Telecine

Telecine is the process of converting images from processed film stock to video for use in nondestructive editing or archiving. The word is a combination of the root words "tele," as in television, and "cine," as in cinema. Large post production houses in the film industry handle the 35mm and larger prints that are used in feature films and television commercials, but smaller gauge film stocks like 16mm, Super16mm, 8mm and Super 8mm can be transferred to video at home with some patience, video editing software and your DSLR camera or camcorder.

Things You'll Need

  • DSLR camera or camcorder
  • Tripod
  • Super 8mm projector
  • Projection screen
  • Dark area
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Instructions

  1. Setting Up

    • 1
      A conference room at work, or a spot out in a home garage can suffice as your telecine bay.

      Set up the projection screen in an out-of-the-way area that you can control light levels in easily. Full darkness is not necessary, but the darker you can make your projection area, the more detail and better color reproduction you are going to be able to get.

    • 2
      Getting the distance just right may take some experimentation.

      Set up your Super 8 projector on a flat, sturdy surface such as a dinner table or desk. You may have to play with the projector's distance from the screen to get the optimal image size for your particular camera and lens combination, but generally about 8 to 10 feet away is just fine.

    • 3
      Now is when using a DSLR comes in handy; it is much more compact than your average camcorder, but either will suffice.

      Set up your camera and tripod directly beneath the emitter lens of the projector, making sure that the two lenses are lined up as closely horizontally and vertically as possible, without the camera obstructing the projector beam.

    • 4

      Thread your film footage into the projector, taking care to maintain the loop that keeps the film from binding. There should be an indicator in the takeup area of the projector that shows the proper film routing.

    • 5

      Check the projector image's focus before moving on to shooting the projected images.

    Option 1: DSLR Shooting

    • 6

      Using the projector's trim knob, advance the film footage one frame at a time to display each frame of the footage on your reel.

    • 7

      Snap a shot of each frame, making sure that your camera tripod is locked down and the same focal length, focus and other adjustments are used for each shot.

    • 8
      Using a laptop to keep notes can help to keep track of the process.

      Keep a written log or use a computer to generate and fill in a spreadsheet of problem frames or frames that could use a little color correction. Use your camera's frame counter to keep track of where you are.

    Option 2: Camcorder Shooting

    • 9
      Lock down your tripod and make a note of all settings in your log.

      Frame up the projected image in the camcorder's viewfinder. Use manual focus and exposure settings, if available, to ensure that all frames are exposed consistently.

    • 10

      Start the camcorder recording. If possible, shoot at a frame rate like 24p or 30p, to match the frame rate of the projector.

    • 11

      Start the projector rolling. You should run at 24fps or 18fps, depending on the speed at which your original footage was shot.

    Putting It All Together

    • 12

      Import your video footage or stills into a non-linear editing system like Final Cut Pro or Adobe Premiere.

    • 13

      Drag all of your files into the timeline and set them to render. Depending on which method you have chosen to capture your images, as well as your computer's memory and CPU speeds, this may take a long time to a really long time.

    • 14
      Edit out any half frames or black frames.

      Check your footage for odd or partial frames. When recording video from a projector, flicker will be very evident. There is also the chance of getting several half frames in a row or completely black frames. If you find these, simply edit them out.

    • 15

      Export the final product as any of several popular file formats, such as .mov, .dv, .avi, .mpeg4 or .wmv .

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