Quality of 8mm film

[David Thrasher]

Actually the frame rate refers to how it will be projected - 
16 fps (frames per second) for silent films (or 18 fps for Super 8) and 24 fps for sound films. Movie cameras with variable speeds have this feature so that you can either undercrank the camera (make it shoot fewer frames per second) to make things appear to move faster when projected normal speed or overcrank (shoot more frames per second) to make things slow down when projected. This feature is for special effects such as when they slow down an explosion in a movie. Most video camcorders can't do this although I think I might have heard that that Panasonic VHX-100 might and perhaps the CineAlta.

-Dave

Original messages:

Date: Thu, 24 Jul 2003 10:21:46 -0500
Subject: [MacDV] Re: Quality of 8mm film
From: Steven Rogers 
Message-Id: <89D086E2-BDEA-11D7-B9F9-00039373464C at austin.rr.com>


On Thursday, July 24, 2003, at 07:46 AM, thomas fritscher wrote:

> Super-8 is usually shot on 18 fps. although the better cameras can do 
> 24 or even 56 fps, cheap ones run on 18.

The frame rate is just a reference standard. My parents had (and I 
still have) a Bolex Paillard that would shoot from something like six 
to 56 fps.  You just turn a dial on the side to pick the speed you 
want.  Just because there's a standard speed doesn't mean that the film 
you have was shot at that speed, but its a good starting point.

SR