Transferring 8mm, Super 8mm, and 16mm film to digital video
The services we provide
Take Care of Quality and People; Profits Take Care of Themselves:
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By: Bruce Mayfield |
Many years ago, I made the decision that I would rather apologize for higher prices -- and produce the highest quality product in my industry; than to apologize many times for cheap quality -- to stay competitive with the cheapest prices in my industry. I also made the decision to treat every client as if they were my own Grandparent or Grandchild -- like I would want someone to treat me.
Our Film Transfer Method & Technology:
Because I have a Computer Science degree, we were the very first small gauge film transfer company to "go digital". I literally trashed all my old telecine equipment and started from scratch -- to re-invent our modern transfer procedures. As you can see, we went a different direction -- focusing on digital master tapes -- which has now been applauded, and adopted, by the digital archive industry.
The rest of the industry went directly to DVDs as archives -- which has turned out to be an industry wide mistake.
Over the years we have refined and retooled our technical assets. My competitors would simply love to know "how we do it" -- due to the simple fact that we have redone work initially done by virtually every one of my major competitors. In many cases, my work has resulted in my clients getting their money back from my competitors! If you "just have to know" what I use and how I do it, I do not need your business and you can go to the "transfer mills".
Ultimately, "what" I do for you is more important than "how" I do it for you.
Bottom line: I guarantee in writing that:
- Your digital master will be so sharp, you will
be able to see the fine grain patterns in your film. As you know, that
is as sharp as you can get it. How we get it that sharp is "our
business", not our competitors -- who would love to make it theirs, too.
This topic is not open for public discussion.
- Your digital master will be flicker free; and,
synchronized to an NTSC signal.
- Your digital master will usually look "as good"
as your original film, and many times, "look better". If we
consistently make your film look only "as good" as your original film,
we feel we have failed.
- We guarantee that your digital master is NOT
the by-product, or synchronous product, of an inferior secondary video
format -- like composite video or MPEG2.
- We guarantee that we watch, correct, and enhance
every foot of your digital transfer -- checking
your film first for authenticity, and second for photographic
improvement.
- We guarantee that we actually "re-shoot" your
film, as if we were "there with a camera". Your film is
transferred by an accomplish "artist" in the media arts. Most of my
staff has a 4 year degree in Film, Photography, Media Arts, or they
are an accomplished artist in one of these fields -- in their own
right. Each staff member is both proud and accountable for their work,
such that they put their name beside my name in the credits of your
production.
- Last, but not least, I guarantee that my staff cares. They share my vision of the importance of the work they do -- and they are good at what they do.
The only expectation I caution clients about -- and it is just the truth -- is the fact that when digitizing film, the natural light spectrum is compressed to the narrower visual spectrum of TV and computer monitors. There is no such color as black or white in the world of digital display only RGB. The net effect is that more contrast shows up in shadow areas of video than in your original film.
For film destined for public broadcast, initial master tapes are processed in a non-linear environment -- typically with 3 color correction and gamma filters -- to selectively fine tune these gray scale densities. This is a service we can offer our commercial clients, at an extra cost, however, most commercial studios choose to send their masters to specialty studios which perform this service on a frame-by-frame basis.
Preserving Nostalgia:
We have developed a style for presenting your old films that preserves some of the annoying frustrations of "home movies". Most young children have never heard the clicking and grinding sounds of a projector -- sometimes "eating your film"-- or seen the flutter of the processing holes as the final inch of the tape suddenly blasts the room with a flood of white light. Most processing houses just "cut that stuff out". We purposely leave "some of it" in your video as a reminder of both a time and technology that will never come again. Kids need to see and understand the imperfections of both their families and the technology that shapes their lives. If they are encouraged to ask questions about "holes in film" and "flutters in film" and how old projectors worked, maybe they will one day ask questions about how families -- with imperfections -- "used to work", too.
Film Cleaning:
We use a double wet-gate method of cleaning your film that does not damage it. Roughly 80 to 90 percent of the "dirt and lint" are removed from the film. This cleaning process also masks "many" small cracks and scratches in the emulsion -- but no guarantees. "Small" is relative. Please note that this process does not cover up large scratches, mold damage, adhesive dirt or chemical crystalline "snow flake" formations that become embedded in the emulsion after years of storage. Aggressive physical or chemical cleaning in these cases can harm your film. We do not clean film that has extensive mold or water damage or that has obvious physical damage -- like damaged holes that could grab the cleaning medium and rip your film.
Film Breakage:
We have a full time splicing department. We do prep and repair broken film at no charge -- within reason -- so our digital products well be the best they can be. We will "finish" partially edited projects that were never "completed" -- for a small hourly fee.
Film Repair:
We do not "add value or life" to antique film. Any repairs, at this stage in the film's life, are so we can digitize it. Many times, with new digital technology we don't need to "repair it", we can just "fake it!". Many times film has damaged "pin-feed holes". The result is that the film "flutters"-- without remedy. Using a bit of digital and technical "cheating" we are "usually" able to re-create a smooth, steady picture worthy of comparison to the original "prime condition" of the film. If you have damaged film, tell us what problems you have. If your film "stinks" like vinegar but is still "flat" -- get it to us ASAP. If your film "stinks" and looks like "macaroni" on your spool, forget it. You have "dead film". You waited too long and it's now too late for our services. There are, however, some specialty "film processors" with chemical baths who may be able to help you.
We do work with light "vinegar syndrome" film -- at your own risk. We do NOT guarantee 1) constant focus or 2) flicker-less transfers when working with vinegar syndrome (VS) film. Just double the price per reel for each reel that has VS. If we can not do anything with your film, we can refer you to chemical labs that can work with your film.
Family History ID Numbers (TM):
We take extra time to custom insert numeric graphics between each "video reel". This is a "reel pain" and takes extra time and expense. These numbers are large enough and stay on the screen long enough for you to see them in Fast Forward or Fast Reverse searches for footage. These numbers can also be used as "in points" and "out points" for editing; and, as references when you are making an "audio track" with loved ones who are watching the video -- or a stand-alone video, called a Video Interview Bed. I can tell you how to do this.
Family History ID Numbers are invaluable in telling family stories, asking questions, and for younger members of the family -- who are learning the "family history". The are most handy when talking about the films -- by telephone, across the country. These ID numbers enable family members -- especially younger ones (less than 70 years old) -- to ask questions about the video using the "reel numbers" as references.
IDs also are useful Digital Video (DV) "photo transfer" services to find frames that you want to be converted to photographs. IDs also help you catalogue your Family Film Legacy. Last but not least, ID's assist in the editing your digital footage -- in points and out points -- in non-linear editors on computers. We assign ID Numbers when we consolidate your small reels onto larger reels using a mix of Reel ID numbers and "leader spacers". The spacers, "white or colored film strips", serve a "spacer" or "segue way" by showing where the original smaller reels started and ended.
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Color Correction / Enhancement:
If your movies are "washed-out", "too dark" or in some cases "discolored" due to improper daylight film shot inside or indoor film shot outside, we have advanced technology to "improve" if not "correct" these problems. Using 3-chip digital color cameras and our experience with film and color, we can render a one-to-one color reproduction, and in some cases, make the finished product "more real-to-life" than the original film. We can do very little with absolutely "clear film" or "black film" except "cut it" out of your video.
Music:
Optional and at no extra cost: Great background music should "frame" your images; not "color them". No musical background is better than the wrong musical background. I understand the musical need for your movies. I have a formal education in music and use to commercially "lay" music onto images for a living. As a result, my tastes in background music are polished, professional, and conservative. What I have learned from years of doing this kind of work, is that you do not want music which is more powerful than, or is badly matched to, the visual and authentically emotional content of your home movies. Music should echo and enhance -- not mask -- all true levels of love and life. Great background music should more times be felt than heard. Great background music should attempt to connect and then echo the wide range of authentic and quickly changing emotions of your life and times -- not Hollywood's nor Nashville's. Although we love old songs of eras past, they do "mask", rather and "echo and enhance" true levels of love and life. For that reason, most "Pop" music -- which is very thematic with powerful lyrics, an experience in itself -- tends to "mask" the authentic, usually subtle, and always fleeing moments of true love and life in home movies. That's why most popular music "of the day" -- old emotional favorites sung by "artists of the day" -- just don't work -- for long, anyway. When the scene changes, and it will, rapidly in most cases, the music becomes disjunctive and intrusive to your visual experience. Much of your authentic emotional experience of your life and times is lost. After all, there are many authentic emotions which even words, say nothing of "pop" music, can not express.
| Example of video and music. |
Click on the QuickTime
button
to download a free copy of QuickTime. It is an nice tool to add your computer for viewing video. |
We pride ourselves in having selected music that is as beautiful, as it is subtle -- to "enhance" almost every scene of your video. We use classically styled music -- usually for solo piano. Emotional undertones range from "light and free" to "pensive" -- with no heavy orchestration or singing. Last, but not least, our music is legal, royalty free to you, because the royalties were paid by us, and does not put you or us into violation of copyright laws. As individuals are now being sued for accepting copyrighted music, this is very important to you.
| MiniDV vs. Hard Disk |
| We
work with hard drives for both Mac and PC computers. DV Stream
files (on MiniDV tape) -- take just under 14.0 gigabytes
of storage -- for each hour of video. Compare this to the 4.7
gig on a DVD-R -- for 2 hours of "compressed video", and
you see MiniDV files are big. Some clients with medium or large projects -- over 4 hours -- prefer a hard drive -- in addition to a set of MiniDV tapes -- to save time loading their computers -- to edit their video and add audio. MiniDV tape and a hard drive - both have their strengths and drawbacks. To use a MiniDV tape requires a MiniDV or HDV camcorder. If you don't already have one or access to one, a MiniDV camcorder cost about $150. A MiniDV tape cassette cost about $4. A MiniDV tape is a true archive. Longevity of a MiniDV tape is measured in decades. A MiniDV camcorder -- a stand-alone, self-contained system -- in storage, should last as long. MiniDV tapes can take up to a 10 "G" drop. Finally, a MiniDV or HDV camcorder is necessary to off-load your videos -- after you edit -- to create "true archives" for your family. To use a hard drive requires a host computer system. A hard drive -- of any kind, even with backups -- is NOT a true archive system. Longevity of a hard drive and backup system is measured in months (less than 5 years). Both the host system and drives are subject to "technology shifts". Storing hard drives in your attic for 10 years is a sure guarantee for losing your archive -- even if the drives are in perfect condition. If you don't believe me, try to find a "floppy disk drive", "USB-1 port, parallel port, etc. -- say nothing of asking your kids or parents to find one. New "high impact" hard drives -- for shipping data -- costs about $150. Even now, Blu-Ray is replacing ALL DVD technology and Flash Drives are replacing ALL hard disk technology. Get my drift -- about technology shift? A "regular" hard drives is delicate and not well suited to being shipped, typically only rated to survive a three to four "G" (gravity) drop -- about a "one inch drop". New "high impact" drives will take about a "3 foot drop" -- or so -- or so " they say. Bottom Line: Hard drives "go fast". MiniDV tapes "go the distance". What "they" don't tell you -- before you rush out to buy "their" high impact hard drive: For the same price -- you may want to consider a low cost MiniDV or HDV camcorder with quadruple purposes as follows: 1) a "real time" input/output video subsystem -- like an external hard drive -- to your computer; 2) a modern Digital Video (HDV) camera -- to acquire new video footage of your family and watch them on your new HDTV; 3) a video capture system -- instead of tying up your expensive computer -- for digitizing analogue video from VHS tapes, Video 8 tapes, HI8 tapes, D8 tapes and Beta tapes, and, finally, 4) a device that can be stored for decades -- with your MiniDV tapes -- which is NOT subject to "technology shifts" of the computer industry over those same decades. |
Slow Motion:
(Optional) Many old films run too fast to catch all the action and personality of beloved memories. We have special slow motion projectors -- 16mm and 8mm -- and special video decks that allow you to savor old film clips. Each frame of your film is exploited in terms of the emotional kinetic energy. We have several strategies for helping you select which reels you would like to "slow mo". Call us for more details.
Why Two Digital Tapes?
"Shhh-tuff Happens"! You need a Digital Backup of you film so you and your film can "rest in peace". Getting copies/replacements made locally may not always be easy. You would never want to ship your Digital Master -- period! The Digital Backup is what you will eventually want to give the next generation sooner or later. A Digital Backup lets you do it sooner! Theoretically, digital backups are identical in every way to the digital master because digital tape is digital and can be copied to another digital tape without data loss. This is not true of analog tape!
Having a backup insures that you will be able to do this with a "fail safe" strategy. Bottom line, you need a digital backup for many reasons; that's why we give you a Digital Backup -- and do NOT make it optional.
| The "Usual Deal" |
A typical
order includes:
We are happy to provide options such as:
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Digital Video (DV) Master.
Your DV Master Set (and Digital Backup Set) will give you absolutely the best "reproduction" of your film possible. The resolution and color quality on your DV Master rivals the original film -- and in some cases --surpasses it! If you have a good DV Master Tape and "Master Backup" then you can feel safe to "let time take its toll" on your old, original dying film. DV is accepted in both "pro-sumer" or "semiprofessional" and "consumer" grades that will provide your family with alternatives to preserving their memories as technology changes. You can now download your DV tape to your hard drive where you will be able to create your own video DVD at home!
DV tape is "computer ready" to download -- using a IEEE 1394 port (Also known as a "FireWire", "iLink", or "DV port") directly to your computer's hard drive. From there you can create JPEG "photos" from your film to reprint on your printer or to put them on the Internet.
MiniDV is superbly suited to editing, and is in fact the preferred format for small productions because it is compact and full-frame. To edit the DV files, you can chose from Pinnacle's Studio line, Ulead's MediaStudio, Sony's Vegas, and a variety of others on the Windows platform, and Apple's iLife is fabulous for editing and DVD creation on the Macintosh platform.
Multiple DVD Copies:
Just about everyone has a DVD player now. Your "viewing" media will be on DVD. Because your DVD's are not copy protected, you and your family can make more copies from the DVD's that we give you. We can make up to 10 DVD's per volume for our "at cost" so that you have as many DVDs as you want -- not just need.
Secure Shipping.
My father recently found our old family film in the bottom of an old filing cabinet. Like many folks, he "just forgot" he had them -- for 30 years!
We have never lost a shipment, so I had him ship our "family jewels" according to the "special shipping instructions" for our clients. We now have those reels on MiniDV and have passed around the results on DVD -- safe and sound.
We have complete shipping instructions in each of our price quotes! We do not recommend using the US Post Office for shipping, because they do not have a true "tracking" system "online" for consumers -- but I hear they are working on one. Beware that a USPS "insurance claim number" is not a "tracking ID number" -- the latter of which can make the difference between something being "misplaced" or "lost"! We use UPS 3rd Day Select. They do offer a "traceable" tracking number "online" AND they offer a Forwarding Service. Their website is easy to use and you can watch your package travel -- state by state.
IMPORTANT: Specify "Adult Signature Required" on all shipments!
Return Shipping.
As for the trip back to your home, we have a tried & proven method of three and four phase shipping that insures that at no time will all family memories be at risk after we receive them. After you have reviewed your "confirmation" DVD and we receive your final payment, we ship the remaining Digital Backup MiniDVs and DVD copies of your video sets and we ship your film back. Finally, after you confirm you have that shipment, we ship your DV Master tapes. We do not ship anything until you confirm that you have received the prior shipments. That's "secure shipping" -- and a premium service! Our prices reflect the additional care we take for your "film memories".
We guarantee our work:
We guarantee that we will correct any problem that is "our fault" at no extra cost to you -- even if it means re-doing your project.
Our clients are the best in the world. We have never had anyone ask us for their money back for our work. On some occasions, we even get "tips"! I often get e-mails months after I finish projects -- telling me how much they enjoy their videos.
When we ship your "confirmation video", you will have the opportunity to review your video and give us feedback -- before you make your final payment. We will be happy to answer any questions that you may have and work with you to your satisfaction!
If for any reason you are unhappy with our work, so are we. For the most part, I catch problems before they catch me -- but things go wrong sometimes. For example, we recently had a "duplication deck" go bad without realizing it. We called our clients and asked them to check their copies. We then replaced every bad copy at no charge and at our expense.
For example, I put a client's married name on labels instead of her maiden name. I immediately reprinted labels and sent them to her. I then started asking for that info on my price quotes -- so please provide that info, too.
For another example, I had a cable go bad on my graphics generator and the graphics started breaking up at random. The display was OK, but the copies were flawed. When I corrected the problem, I re-copied all the copies and sent the client a new proof.
NOTICE: We will not re-do a project due to a reel being "out of order". From experience we find that -- over long periods of time -- that reels tend to mysteriously get in the wrong canisters, wrong boxes, etcetera -- by gremlins! Even our clients sometimes get reels "out of order" when they are trying to put them "in order"! With "reel ID numbers", you "reel-ly" don't need to worry about confusion of "run-together reels", or reels being out of order. The problem simply does not exist. If / when you find a maverick reel, you simply document where the reel belongs and then sit back and enjoy it!
Payment.
If you have a hardship case, please tell us. We will work with you anyway we can. We only ask for a partial advanced payment by check or by VISA / MasterCard -- which we typically "just hold" until we start work on your project. Only after you approve your "confirmation DVD", do we invoice you for the next stage of your project.
We do discount payments by check since we do not have to pay "service fees" for the use of bankcards. If you have a "huge project", then we typically handle both "confirmation DVDs and payments" in stages. All "shipping charges" are included in the price of our quote to you, so you know the "worst case" price.
Meanwhile, if we can save you money in any way, we do. It is common for us to re-quote a project "down" in price -- after we have finished it, knowing what you actually sent and what we actually produced. Tell me how many reels -- by sizes (i.e., 50ft, 150ft, 200ft, 300ft, 400ft). Small (3-inch) reels are 50 feet and run about 3.5 minutes. The number of feet is usually printed on the spokes of the larger reels -- which are usually in 6- and 7-inch canisters. (Note: A dollar bill is exactly 6 inches long.)
For more information:
Thank you so very much! To get an idea of cost, time, and to read about our shipping strategy -- or just to ask a question or state a concern -- please contact us!
You can also use the form on that page to get a detailed price quote.
This is what we do, find out about what folks think of how well we do it.
If you're wondering if there's more that can be done about preserving family memories, here's a few ideas.