16mm beginner advice

[Adam E]

i have a dvx100a and love it but have always, as im sure most of us have, wanted to shoot film. i have brief experience with shooting super 8; i found a decent canon camera on ebay a couple years ago for around $20. i was wondering if anyone could recommend books or websites to read. im looking for information regarding what to look for in purchasing a 16mm camera, what to look for in film stock, learning to set up the camera...pretty much a "16mm for dummies" if you will. im not looking to get super into it and spend a million dollars, i just want some experience. i realize that film is expensive but, more than likely, i wouldnt be shooting a great deal of it.

how much can a decent 16mm camera be had for?

also, why is it that every camera i look at (ebay) seems to be wind-up? just because they are older or is there something i am missing?

thanks,
adam

[Barry_Green]

Cheap cameras were all pretty much wind-up. For a battery-powered motorized camera you're looking for a CP16 or Beaulieu R16 or Canon Scoopic or something like that. Obviously the later sync-sound cameras, like the Eclair and Aaton models and the Arri 16BL, were all motorized...

If you're buying off ebay, you can get a decent CP16/R kit for under $1500. If you don't need a crystal motor, the Krasnogorsk K-3 windup camera can usually be found for under $200, and it can turn out some very nice results. If you intend to shoot stuff with dialogue, the minimum camera to entertain would be the CP16/A, and the CP16/R is significantly better; the Eclair ACL can also be found down in the lower price range (under $2,000).

[wadespencer99]

My friend has a K3 super16 with the crystal sync motor on it that I believe is still for sale. He had it on ebay and it was won by a deadbeat bidder, so I'm pretty sure he still has it. He's a member here...I'll send him a link to this thread.

It was used in the video I posted in this section a few threads down.

[ropbo]

There's an excellent book called "Cinematography" written by Kris Malkiewicz and M. David Mullen, ASC.

It talks about different kinds of cameras, lighting, film technology, filters, sound recording, postproduction and much more.

It's really a great book and the language is very easy to understand. I've read it a thousand times.

It's more focused on 16mm.

I highly recommend it.

[joachim hoge]

Also check out www.cinematography.com and the forums there.
They even have a "newbie" kind of forum