Which 16mm film camera?

nantnee

nantnee

Well-known member
I, for some reason, got a urge to buy a 16mm camera. I cant say i know anything about them. But, i did find some on ebay: Krasnogorsk, Bolex, Beulieu. Whats good? I look at some of the pricing for transfering to digital, and a 400ft roll would cost $76 bucks from one place. Any ideas, suggestions, books???
 
I'm no expert but I used the Arri and Canon before and they are both good.
but I would pefer the Canon scoop because it's compact and easy to use.
the build in light metter helps a lot too.
if you are a student, you should be able to get a student discount when you develop and transfer the film!
 
My guess is there's probably a lot of film schools getting rid of these things, or maybe they already did. When I was in school we used Arri 16S, fine enough camera – although not usable for sync sound!
 
I have a completely refurbed Beaulieu R16A that I'd like to find a new home for if you're interested.

If you're not familiar with it it's the camera that Chris Marker shot Sans Soleil with.
 
Krasnogorsk-3 is a great experimental camera... expect fun artifacts like gate weave.

The Bolex Reflex has been a very popular camera with students and film schools. There are some out there with a Bolex add-on that helps keep the frame rate solid for double-system sound.
 
I've never been a fan of the bolex. I use Aaton LTR and XTR Prods. You can probably find an LTR or XTR Prod on sale somewhere used. But they aren't too cheap. Excellent cameras though, both of them.
 
I've never cared for the Bolex, either, and I have owned several. The prism/lens system impacts the aperature (you need more light) and the sharpness (the image passes thru the prism before hitting the film). The glory of the Arriflex (and what they got the Academy Award for in the 50's) was that you get true reflex/thru-the-lens viewing, but then the mirror spins out of the way and absolutely NOTHING is between your lens and the film for the exposure. (Many other later cameras followed their lead on this.) I will now only use a Bolex if I am able to close my lens down to at least f4. Any more open than that (even with rx lenses made especially for the Bolex) and focus can get funny. I also use a Super16 Bolex in cases where I want to intercut 60fps slow mo or FxF animation with my 16x9 digital video stuff.
 
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what prices should I look out for and for which brands? It seems $300-$400, that ive found, is standard. But that was for the ones mentioned above.
 
That's a good range for an old Bolex. It'll get up to around $1000 for a later model (Rex 4 or Rex 5), especially if prime lenses are included. This is assuming that you stay it the spring-wound models. Electric drives cost more.
 
Hello,

I've got a K3 and some rolls of film, BW and color, that I'll sell for $200 plus shipping. It is quirky but I've shot some beautiful footage that was transferred to Betacam and used in a corporate video. It was intercut with some footage shot with an SR2 and it looked great.

Joe
 
what does quirky mean? i honestly dont know anything about film cameras. i'm looking for books right now.
 
Have you ever shot with 16mm?

I'd try to get on a set with 16mm as a member of the camera department, just so you can see how everything works. It's a very different style of shooting. You might realize that the hassles of 16mm are too much, or if you like the workflow of 16mm, you'll know what everything means when you're trying to make your decisions.
 
never shot with one before. It just seems to a be a good learning tool for really seeing the effects of lighting and exposure and such. I dont know of any places in orlando like that, at least not until ive begun my searches.
 
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