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Wolverine F2D 35mm Film to Digital Image Converter with 2.4-Inch LCD and TV-Out $100.98 Take all those stacks of 35mm film, Negatives or Slides and convert them into (JPEG) digital images to preserve them forever with this the Wolverine F2D200 35mm Film Scanner…. |
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Vukodlak Productions- 8mm
8mm Video Camera Cleaners
Telecine Without Tears – Film to Video the Cardboard Way
TELECINE WITHOUT TEARS
Film to Video the Cardboard Way
Putting cine movie-film onto video/DVD can cost quite a lot if it’s done professionally. And unless you use a reputable lab, results can vary, together with a risk of losing or damaging your film. It’s relatively easy to do your own telecine transfers. And the quality can be impressive. Here’s how.
What you need
A camcorder, a movie projector that has constantly variable speeds, and a piece of good quality cardboard ! A lot cheaper than a telecine translucent screen and probably better, without grain or hot-spot problems.
Getting the Speed right
You can use a projector with non-variable speeds, but the chances are you’ll notice fluctuations of the light in the video image. Still there’s nothing to lose in giving it a try, and your projector just might have more-or-less the right speed regardless of what it says ! However, it’s best to be able to vary the projection speed if you want to be sure of constant image density. The speed should be very near 16.66 frames per second, or 25 frames per second. This is if you have 50 cycle mains electricity. In the USA it’s 60 cycles, so the speed needs to be 15, 20 or 24 f.p.s. So first you have to decide what speed the film was taken at. Silent films are normally shot at 16 or 18 f.p.s. Sound films could have been shot at any speed: 16, 18, 24 or 25. If you are unsure, just project the film and see if the folks move around normally. In practice, it doesn’t really look wrong if the film was shot at say 18 f.p.s. and you project at 16.66 f.p.s. And 24 looks exactly the same as 25. How it sounds is a different matter, but more of that later. Choose your transfer speed nearest to the original filming speed.
Improving the Image
It obviously makes sense to start off with the best quality image. Rather than projecting a big image on a screen, find a piece of good white card a few inches across, certainly no more than a foot, and focus the projector on that. If your film material is rather contrasty, try using a cream-coloured card. Another way to reduce contrast is to introduce into the room a bit of ambient light. The projector should give a very evenly-lit image. Normally, your eyes adjust to a film image that is perhaps bright in the middle but tailing off towards the edges. But the camera’s eye sees what it sees, and consequently the image will look odd. The earlier projectors with conventional tungsten lighting and condenser lenses, often give more even lighting than halogen projectors without condensers. If your projector gives uneven lighting, try putting a grey water-colour wash onto the centre of the card, softening off towards the edges. Or, in front of the camcorder or projector use a piece of optical glass or filter that has been darkened in the centre. The projector zoom-lens should be set at a long focal length. Alternatively, use a fixed focal length lens. If you are projecting 8mm, try using a 16mm projector lens of say 35mm or even 50mm focal length. Now…. as you are showing a small image you have light to spare…. Make a black card or paper “washer” that fits neatly into the end of the projector lens barrel. It should be right up against the front lens element. Don’t make the hole in the washer too small, but enough to effectively close down your lens by a couple of f-stops. This will give a quantum leap in definition ! Why ? Because it’s like a camera-lens…. the sharpness improves when the outer parts of the lens are not in use. All lenses work better when stopped down. On a normal size of screen it would give a rather dim image, of course, but it’s bright enough on our cardboard screen.
The Transfer
So now, hopefully, we have a nice sharp evenly-lit image that shows the cine film at its best. Before the transfer, it’s a good idea to thoroughly clean the film with special film-cleaner if it needs it, or at least remove dust with a soft cloth. Firmly set up the camcorder somewhere near the centre-line of the projector, perhaps behind or just above it. If above, beware of ripples of heat from the lamp-house ! The lens on the camera will be at a long focal length setting, so that the projected image fills the viewfinder. Manually focus on some news-print held against the card, and keep this focus setting for the actual transfer. Key-stoning of the image shouldn’t be a problem as you are situated well back from the small screen. When you are satisfied that framing and focus are perfect, turn off the lights and begin the transfer. Ideally the camcorder’s exposure should be set manually to one aperture for the whole film. Examine your results on a fairly large video screen. If you still see density fluctuations, fine-tune the projector speed and try again. With care you’ll end up with a good, sharp telecine, that looks professional.
Sound
If the film carries a sound track, you can connect the sound projector to the camcorder and record in sync. How you do this in order to get a good track on video is outside the scope of this blog. However, coming back to the projector running speeds…..Whereas our eyes are easily fooled by a slightly wrong speed, our ears usually are not ! A sound track recorded at 18 f.p.s. for example, will most likely sound wrong at 16.66 f.p.s. So it may be best to transfer the sound independently to the computer, then lay the track onto the video, making sync adjustments as necessary. Maybe others would like to comment….
About the Author
For more of my photos/articles and such, visit my blog!
How Do I Transfer My 8mm Film To DVD
In either case, you want to sit down and think about the importance of your film to yourself and your extended family, what skills and equipment you have or are willing to buy and how much time you have to invest in the project.
For most people, time, skills and/or equipment are the issues which cause them to search out a company that can do it for them. Before you do that, you need to understand what type of 8mm film to DVD processes there are and which one best fits your needs and budget.
Before we jump into the different 8mm film to DVD processes, let’s go over some basics. Video has several characteristics that determine how good it is. One of the most important characteristics is the number of lines of resolution. The resolution determines how detailed and sharp the video is. If you’ve ever watched a standard definition video channel on an HDTV and then switched to the HD version, you notice that the HD version is much sharper and detailed. The reason is that standard definition video has 480 horizontal lines while HD has 1080 lines.
In a similar way, your old 8mm movie films have a maximum resolution. The maximum resolution for an 8mm film to DVD transfer is limited by the film grain size and the size of the frame. Research has shown that 8mm film has the equivalent of 700 lines of horizontal resolution. So, a standard definition 8mm film to DVD transfer will only be able to capture 480 out of the 700 lines of resolution on your film. A high definition 8mm film transfer will be able to capture all 700 lines of resolution on your 8mm film since it is a 1080 line video format.
In addition to resolution, the type of film transfer is equally important to the final video quality you receive from your 8mm film to DVD transfer.
There are a few basic types of 8mm film to DVD transfer processes. More than 98% of the companies out there today use a real-time transfer. That is, they capture the film at the same speed that the film normally runs at. So, if a 3 inch reel runs in 3.5 minutes, the capture takes just 3.5 minutes. There are several ways to perform a real-time 8mm film to DVD transfer. Some shoot the film on a screen and record it with a camcorder. Some use mirrors and a camera. Some transfer the film to VHS first using equipment from the 1980′s and then transfer that to DVD. Because of the transfer speed and nature of a real-time capture, the resulting video frames are usually slightly blurry and the colors are faded compared to the film. In general, any type of real-time transfer will result in video that is 30-50% worse than the film’s current condition.
A second and much newer 8mm film to DVD transfer process is called frame by frame. A frame by frame process means that each 8mm film frame is captured like a separate digital picture. Most frame by frame machines are high-end $50,000+ machines that scan or project the image directly onto a CCD device. Reading each frame one at a time ensures that all the details are captured from the film. A frame by frame process will result in video that is 30-50% better than a similarly configured real-time process.
Be aware, some companies claiming a frame by frame transfer are doing a real-time transfer and then are extracting each film frame after the real-time capture. Because the capture process is real-time, it will still produce video that is 30-50% worse than the current film’s quality just like any other real-time process. These companies are trying to capitalize on the “Frame by Frame” slogan and price without giving you frame by frame quality.
So, at this point you’ve learned that 8mm film to DVD transfers can capture at standard definition (480 lines) or high definition (1080 lines). You’ve also learned that a frame by frame transfer can be 30-50% better quality than a real-time transfer. So, looking at it this way, there are now four 8mm film to DVD transfer process combinations. In order from least to best quality we have:
1) Real-Time Standard Definition (least quality)
2) Real-Time High Definition
3) Frame by Frame Standard Definition
4) Frame by Frame High Definition (best quality)
You’ll find all four processes being used today and you’ll see the price reflect that. Real-time standard definition processes go for 10 to 15 cents/ft, real-time high definition for 16-21 cents/ft, frame by frame standard definition 21 to 28 cents/ft and frame by frame high definition for 40 to 60 cents/ft
Besides these 4 different 8mm film to DVD transfer processes above, you’ll notice that a few companies have started to offer restoration services. The reason is that over 90% of the 8mm film today has colors that have shifted, exposure that is now darker, is grainy and scratched. These are natural side affects of the aging process. In addition, there may have been exposure or other types of issues that were originally recorded on the film to begin with.
Companies will have a wide range of abilities from no restoration at all, to a limited scene level color corrector, to full frame by frame restoration using dedicated film restoration machines.
If you want to pursue doing the 8mm film to DVD transfer yourself, there are a few options you can try. Elmo used to make a telecine transfer machine. They sell for about $2000. It produces about 240 lines of resolution per frame and only transfers to VHS.
Goto also makes a telecine machine called the TC-20. You can use a digital camcorder to capture the images through a firewire connection to your computer. This unit costs around $1300. You should be able to read in 480 lines of resolution on this type of transfer.
Even though the Goto machine will produce better results than the Elmo, both will produce the least quality of the 4 processes outlined above. But again, these may be good alternatives for you if you have a lot of film that you want to transfer.
Don’t forget that you’ll most likely need a splicer and splicing tape to repair your film before the transfer. You’ll also want to look into getting a film cleaner to clean the film as well.
About the Author
Video Conversion Experts have been involved in 8mm film to DVD transfers and restoration since he opened his company in 1980. Video Conversion Experts is one of the premiere 8mm film transfer and restoration labs in the United States today. http://www.videoconversionexperts.com