[Frameworks] homemade video copies of 16mm

[Jeff Kreines]

If you plan to work on these films from your homemade HD video transfers, you do NOT want to transfer them to 29.97 fps via a telecine projector. The resulting footage will be filled with blended frames making editing difficult. 

Instead find a cheap used HD camcorder that does 24P -- lots of Canons do this. You could find one that won't record to tape  (broken transport) and just record to computer via FireWire. It will probably cost less than getting a new projector since a conventional projector will do (won't be perfect, you may get occasional frame drift) but it will be better than a telecine projector by far. 

If all you want are rough viewing copies then telecine at 29.97 will be ok.  But don't let the fact you own a particular Sony camcorder determine how you make these rough copies. 

Good luck!

On Jun 23, 2012, at 11:14 PM, "k. a.r." <a_r_k_ at hotmail.com> wrote:

> Thanks, I will have to look for a telecine I guess, 
> 
> What I am doing, and I should have clarified earlier, is trying to make some digital copies from my 16mm "found" footage collection,
> certain films from my collection that I use in the Electric Mural Project.   
> 
> I have over 500 films, 
> so paying anyone for any kind of professional transfer is extremely impossible.
> 
> There are some films that I want to share with other people, and also I have realized that I will probably never make art with an actual film optical printer again
> ( heartbreaking thought ) 
> so I wanted to make some digital copies to work with on the computer, to see if I could make some moving visuals art again.
> 
> That's it. thanks every one for the advice.
> 
> Kristie
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Kristie Reinders, B.F.A. 
> Director of Cinematography, Electric Visions 
> Curator and Head Projectionist, Electric Mural Project 
> The Mission, San Francisco, CA 
> 
> 'A first class technician should work best under pressure.' 
> - - - Issac Asimov 
> 
> > From: djtet53 at gmail.com
> > Date: Sat, 23 Jun 2012 15:21:03 -0400
> > To: frameworks at jonasmekasfilms.com
> > Subject: Re: [Frameworks] homemade video copies of 16mm
> > 
> > To clarify, the OP requested advice on a cheapo projector-and-camcorder transfer. 
> > 
> > There are lots of reasons for people to do this, especially with work in progress. It might even be considered a video work-print. However, for serious work shot in film that is going to be distributed in digital form, a proper scan is the way to go. k.a.r may not be at that point yet, or may have a different purpose in mind. In no way did I mean to suggest that telecine-by-projection is a substitute for a proper scan. It's not.
> > 
> > Of course, a lot depends on the aesthetic strategies involved. People go lo-fi for a reason, with everything from Super-8 to Pixelvision to funky compressed Quicktimes. A DIY telecine could be fine for certain limited kinds of things - including the transfer of already 'distressed' archival material to be included in a doco. But if you see the work in your mind's-eye as lovely rich filmic imagery, (generally transfers of film you shot yourself) trying to save the cost of a scan is penny-wise and results-foolish.
> > 
> > Though I have no personal experience with Bito and Miko, or Kinetta transfers, I trust Jeff's unquestioned expertise in these matters, and were I in need of a scan, I would be eager to investigate any suggestion he would have.
> > 
> > On Jun 23, 2012, at 1:21 PM, Jeff Kreines wrote:
> > 
> > > Since you are in the Mission, you might consider getting a proper scan of your film instead of subjecting it to a projector and camcorder. Note that you will be getting a video with combined fields that often blend two frames together -- and unlike a conventional telecine with real 3:2 pulldown the cadence isn't locked to anything and will drift. 
> > > 
> > > Buck Bito and Jennifer Miko run the Video Transfer Center on Van Ness -- they are relocating in a couple of weeks and will have a new, far better name. They do excellent work in any format -- 8mm, S8, 9.5mm, 16mm, S16, 17.5mm, 28mm, and 35mm. 
> > > 
> > > Disclosure: they have a shiny new Kinetta Archival Scanner, which I make.
> > > 
> > > Jeff Kreines
> > > Kinetta
> > 
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