[Frameworks] Beaulieu 4008 zm4

[Fred Camper]

It's a great camera, and different from most others. Nothing can beat  
its single lens reflex viewing for some uses. It has great speed  
controls (2 fps to 80 fps; I've used all of them), handles really well  
(though a bit unbalanced due to the zoom). The zoom it comes with is  
very good, but can vignette corners at some f stops and focal lengths.  
It has a C mount, which means you can use many other lenses, something  
most super-8s don't offer. I've used lenses made for 16mm, such as the  
12-120 Angenieux zoom, for example. I think there was a fisheye made  
just for super-8, but I've never seen it. One small downside is that  
the shutter angle is narrow, a lot less than 180 degrees, so it's not  
great in low light; a cheaper XL camera is a good supplement. The main  
downside today might be getting and keeping a working battery; see a  
recent FrameWorks thread about that. Also, I don't know about getting  
the camera itself repaired today. Make sure it's in good working order  
first.

Fred Camper
Chicago