Post by torontodon on Jan 14, 2013 7:55:27 GMT -5
Among the many photos and albums I have acquired from both my parents' estates are many reels of movies. There's another collection of movies left by my wife's family. My father shot both 8 mm and 16 mm Bolex, although I do recall a small non-Bolex film camera he used back in the '50s (Bell & Howell?). I have no projectors, otherwise the question I'm about to ask would be irrelevant: How do I make stills from these films? I have no desire to spend gobs of money to have the films transferred to video/DVD, and I have no desire to invest in any single-use gear.
I have tried to use my Epson scanner, which has the ability to scan negs and slides, but it is really hit/miss. Sometimes I can get a discernible image, usually not. And even cranking up the resolution to some ungodly height, when starting with an 8 mm frame, even Kodachrome, by the time the sprocket holes are cropped out, the finished digital image is no prom queen.
Any thoughts? I'm going to check a place today that may have an old editing machine I can probably get for $10, one which will produce a 3x3-inch image using rear projection. That's likely the best I'll be able to do with the 8 mm stuff. The 16 mm films, which are very few in number, are another problem.
Frankly, I don't know why the 16 mm stuff survives. My father shot most of the footage in Africa back in the '60s. Some of it appeared on TV here in Canada, but in the process, the film was edited down and manhandled something awful. No dupes; original footage. I remember discovering the canisters and contents several years after dad passed away and finding them covered in mold, fungus, whatever. I had to toss them; they were unsalvageable. What remains are a few small reels.
I'm not after the movies, just stills, primarily of people. Any ideas how I might be able to capture stills from these movies? I have no macro lenses. Any ideas how I might be able to get better results from the Epson scanner?
Thanks.
I have tried to use my Epson scanner, which has the ability to scan negs and slides, but it is really hit/miss. Sometimes I can get a discernible image, usually not. And even cranking up the resolution to some ungodly height, when starting with an 8 mm frame, even Kodachrome, by the time the sprocket holes are cropped out, the finished digital image is no prom queen.
Any thoughts? I'm going to check a place today that may have an old editing machine I can probably get for $10, one which will produce a 3x3-inch image using rear projection. That's likely the best I'll be able to do with the 8 mm stuff. The 16 mm films, which are very few in number, are another problem.
Frankly, I don't know why the 16 mm stuff survives. My father shot most of the footage in Africa back in the '60s. Some of it appeared on TV here in Canada, but in the process, the film was edited down and manhandled something awful. No dupes; original footage. I remember discovering the canisters and contents several years after dad passed away and finding them covered in mold, fungus, whatever. I had to toss them; they were unsalvageable. What remains are a few small reels.
I'm not after the movies, just stills, primarily of people. Any ideas how I might be able to capture stills from these movies? I have no macro lenses. Any ideas how I might be able to get better results from the Epson scanner?
Thanks.
