FilmFuse

Facts About Beta, VHS, or Home Movie Videotape Preservation

Shawn — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 12:14:31 +0000

Here is a list of useful facts regarding home video formats such as Beta, VHS, Hi8, MiniDV, and VHS-C video tape.

Video tape rewinding - should always be either totally rewound or totally fast forwarded when being stored.
Video tape storage should be in a reasonable temperature range with little variation, dark, and with low humidity.
Video tape storage - should be stored upright, like books in a book case. It is best to keep tapes in plastic cases in order to minimize exposure to dust.
Videotape preservation - the overall life is limited. There are no definite numbers, but tape life is estimated from 10-30 years depending on storage conditions. Degradation of the image and sound is worse the longer a tape has been in existence.
Video degradation happens. Symptoms of video degradation are static, snow, color loss, general distortion, ghost images, and possibly a total loss of the video. Some of these symptoms can be remedied if the tape is transferred soon enough, but once loss occurs to the source tape, it is permanent.
Videotape transfer, properly done, can save a lot of video/audio and accomplish amazing things. However, the transfer capabilities are limited by the source quality. So the sooner, the better.
Video equipment quality varies greatly. There really IS a difference between consumer video, prosumer video, and professional video equipment.

There have been various (and numerous) videotape formats over the years. Some you may not have heard of include:

Betacam SP

M-II

EBU C-format

EBU B-format

U-Matic

D series formats

Digital Betacam

Ampex DCT

DV / DVCAM / DVCPRO

Digital8

D-VHS

W-VHS

Digital S

Betacam SX

HDD-1000

8mm Film & Super 8 Film Preservation Facts

Shawn — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 12:12:10 +0000

Film transfer questions? 8mm film mysteries? There are a number of facts you should know regarding film transfer. These aren’t specific to Super 8 or regular 8mm, but are true of 16mm and other formats as well.

Film preservation is necessary - film deteriorates over time. When it is seriously degrading, it smells awful and starts to shrink and crumble. This problem with film is often called Vinegar Syndrome.

Film should be stored wound on a reel. Film reels often come in 50′ or even 400′ sizes. Some reels are plastic, while the larger reels are often metal and come in metal film canisters. It is easier to archive many smaller reels on one larger reel after splicing the smaller reels together.

Film sometimes has a magnetic sound “stripe” which can be seen on one side along the edge. It has a brown or rust color. Film which has a sound stripe is called sound film.

Film has two sides: emulsion and base. The emulsion is the stuff that starts to deteriorate.

Film must be carefully handled and stored. It is equally important that the projector is well-maintained so that it doesn’t damage the film sprockets or scratch the emulsion.

Film was once the prevalent form of taking home movies. 8mm film and then Super8 film were the standards. Video tape then took over. The “look” of film holds a special place for many enthusiasts, but these days its very difficult to purchase film and even more difficult (and expensive!) to get it developed.

Some of the best 8mm and Super 8 film projectors you will ever find were made by GAF and Eumig. When purchasing a projector, make sure it is clean, well-maintained, and is a quality piece of equipment. It’s worth paying more money for a good unit than to buy the cheapest thing you can find on eBay.

Film images are composed of frames. The problem with many film transfer methods is that they don’t capture every single frame. One result of this is “flicker”.

Telecine Film Transfer Information

Shawn — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 12:09:17 +0000

First of all, what most people ask is how to pronounce the word “telecine”. I have had much discussion with film enthusiasts, indie filmmakers, production guys, film editors, etc. and while some people pronounce the word as “tell-a-seen”, most professional video experts know that telecine is pronounced “tell-a-sin-ee”. So there you have it.

But What IS Telecine?

Telecine is simply the process of transferring the images and sound from a film reel (whether 8mm, 16mm, or Super-8) to video. Telecine can refer to the process of transferring film or to the machine (like the WorkPrinter XP or the DVSniper) used to do the transfer. It is worth noting that there are various processes and various equipment setups that accomplish a successful transfer of film - some better than others.

If you are researching film preservation methods, you will hear terms such as wetgate and will read about various machines (some home-made, some commercially made) such as the WorkPrinter XP or various telecines made by Goko or Elmo. Don’t get bogged down with all the possibilities out there - at least not yet.

How Does Telecine Work?

The basic concept is that you have an output device (a projector) and an input device (a camera), along with a recording device. In between any of these units there may be other devices which alter or tweak the image being projected. An extremely simple telecine is a home movie projector which projects the image onto a white screen paired with a camcorder which records the projected image.

(No, we don’t recommend this method at all.)

The high-level telecine methods include a Rank transfer or wetgate transfer. These options are way out of the average home movie transfer budget. So, we can’t necessarily recommend these methods of film transfer either.

8mm Film or Videotape Transfer Service - Choosing the Best Company

Shawn — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 12:02:23 +0000

If you’ve decided to have a professional film or video transfer company do the work of transferring your film to DVD, you’ll save yourself the work of buying telecine equipment, video capture devices, VCRs, a 3CCD video camera, blank DVDs, a time-base corrector, a DV tape deck, etc. There’s a lot of stuff (expensive stuff) you need if you’re going to do it and do it correctly!

Video Transfer Service Company Questions to Ask

You have seen the ads online, and maybe even the auctions on eBay for companies who will transfer a reel of your Super 8 film for $10 or a VHS tape for $20. They promise to transfer your video to a DVD. But how do you know they will do the job correctly? Will you ever see your video again? Who are these people??

Here are the things you need to find out when considering hiring anyone to transfer your film or video:

How much experience they have. How many years they have done this work. How many times they have done this.
What pieces of equipment they use during each step of the process.
What method they use for film transfer.
What are the total fees they charge for a job and what exactly is included with their price.

You will want a transfer company that will provide you with the following:

Full-frame, flicker-free film transfer
Color-correction of the captured video or film
Backup of all raw captures on MiniDV or other DV tape
A written contract that specifies how they compensate in case of loss or damage

Video or Film Transfer Company Dangers

Many times, the profession film editing “company” asking for your business is a guy who is working out of his basement. If his house burns down, or if his equipment damages your only copy of your home movies on videotape - you’re very likely out of luck. You should be aware that anyone can advertise just about anything on the web. Be careful that you are hiring a genuine company with a solid reputation!

Home Film Transfer Quick How-to Guide

Shawn — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 11:57:04 +0000

Let’s make this simple - in this world, you can only choose two from the following list:

Good film transfer
Fast film transfer
Cheap film transfer

Best Quality Film/Video Transfer

To get the best and fastest film-to-video, you’re going to have to hire a company that specializes in 8mm or Super 8 film/video transfers. The advantages of paying the right video company are obvious: experience, quality equipment, reliability, and just general knowledge of HOW to transfer film or video.

Where videotape (like Beta or VHS) is concerned, a reputable company may have equipment that is way out of your budget - especially when dealing with outdated video tape formats. Sure, you can buy an ancient Beta video tape player on eBay - but can you clean it, fix it, and maintain it?

If you endeavor to do your own film transfers, you will probably have a steep learning curve and it will take you much longer. Not to mention, you will have to invest in a telecine device or video capture devices and additional editing equipment. Keep this in mind, and read out page on How to Choose the Best Telecine Film Transfer Service.

Cheapest Film/Video Transfer

Often, the most economical way - if you have the time and wish to do the work - is to buy the equipment and DIY (do it yourself). But if you have less than 7000 feet of film or less than 20 videotapes, it might make more sense to hire a company (depending on how much they charge). You have to determine the break-even cost of DIY 8mm film transfer vs. paying to have telecine film transfer work done for you.

The main pros of DIY telecine or video transfer are as follows:

You have full control of the process
You can try and retry if you aren’t happy with initial results
You can take your time to do the job and do it right
You personally know what is best to leave in or cut out when editing
It may cost you less in the long run if you have a lot of film or videotapes

The main cons of DIY transfers are as follows:

A steep learning curve
A heavy time investment

So, is “doing-it-yourself” the best way for you to go, or is hiring a professional the best option? Only you can decide - but now you know the options and a few factors to consider before making that decision.