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Alaska Business License # 712765
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The ability for making home movies of the family didn’t become technologically practical and successfully available to the ordinary person until after 1908 when the first non-flammable acetate film was marketed. Different film gauges (size) and formats were initially marketed, but 16mm dominated the amateur home movie film making market until 8mm and Super8 film was introduced into the consumer market. The focus of this history is to give a summary of when mainstream movie film and movie devices became available to the average family in the United States for recording family events and activities. It includes some basic information concerning the proper care and storage of film footage. If you have any old movie film memories, I also give a brief overview of color dye and chemical emulsion instabilities of film that may cause you to decide to make digital copies of those movie films sooner rather than later. Amateur made home movies became practical in 1923 with Kodak’s introduction of 16mm black and white film designed primarily for the needs of the motion picture industry. This black and white film had no sound recording or audio capability. Improvements in technology made way for 16mm color film in 1928 and in 1929 Kodak introduced the first sound recording playback film designed primarily for the needs of the motion picture industry. Kodak introduced its first 16mm home movie sound-on-film projector, the Sound KODASCOPE Special Projector in 1937. It is unclear exactly when Kodak introduced a 16mm sound recording camera for the amateur market, but in 1934 RCA introduced a 16mm sound motion picture camera for the amateur market that recorded an optical soundtrack on the edge of the film. Kodak introduced its first 8 mm amateur motion-picture film, cameras, and projectors in 1932. 8mm film immediately became the preferred gauge used by home movie makers because of its lower cost. 16mm, however, remained in significant use by home movie makers until the late 1940s early 1950s. The use of 16mm film among home movie makers began to decline as Kodak introduced new low priced BROWNIE 8mm movie camera in 1951, the Brownie Movie Projector in 1952, and the BROWNIE Turret Camera in 1955. Although color 8mm film became available in 1935, 8mm film and movie cameras never had any sound recording capabilities. In 1965 Kodak introduces the super8 format and it was this gauge that eventually brought sound recording capabilities to the vast majority of home movie makers. The film and camera technology of 8mm and super 8 made it difficult to make movies indoors or in poor lighting conditions until 1971. Kodak’s introduction of “movies by the light you live in” with Kodak Ektachrome 160 movie film (type A) and the concurrent introduction of two new super8 movie cameras made “existing light” filming in-doors much less difficult and much more successful. The last new technology given super8 film before video became the popular easier way for making home movies was sound recording. In 1973 Kodak introduced two super8 sound recording movie cameras and cartridge-loading super8 film magnetically striped for sound recording. Although 8mm and super8 film provides more image detail, depth of color and resolution than analog video technology, analog video with its film quality contrast at extremely low-light levels and ease of use began to compete with film in 1975 when Sony introduced the first successful consumer analog videotape formats (Betamax). JVC introduced VHS in 1976 and by 1981 analog video tape economics made film an unusual choice for home movie making. Digital video tape became available to the home video maker in 1996. All this history is great, but the useful ought to know important information is the proper storage and periodic film cleaning and lubricating needs of old family film movie you may have and want to keep in good condition. Film projecting for viewing causes eventual wear and tear from the friction of the tape moving through the projector and from the intense heat put out by the projection bulb. Film also tends to attract dirt and dust. Consequently film manufacturers and restorers will unanimously tell you film cleaning and lubricating is vital to keeping it in good condition. Some experts recommend lubricating film prior to every projection to minimize wear friction, scratching, and rough film running, but lubricating as needed after every few projections is more realistic. The frequency for cleaning film is not as clear because over cleaning film can do damage too. It is unlikely for film to need cleaning once its been cleaned for several years. The current standard in the film copy transfer industry is to clean and lubricate movie film before copying it or transferring it to digital video as the cleaning removes mildew, dust, and grime. Generally speaking storing your film movies at home does require some environment considerations. Room, closet, attic, basement temperature should not get higher than 75°F with 70°F and cooler being preferred. Maintain relative humidity in the storage area between 50% and 60%. Vaults maintained at 45°F and 25% relative humidity is the accepted ideal film storage environment. Storing film properly from its beginnings can give it a life expectancy measured in centuries. But the life expectancy of film is not an absolute or a guarantee. Film has inherent tendencies to decay and fade. All film has the potential of developing a self-catalyzing film decay called Vinegar Syndrome. It got this name because it emits a vinegar aroma as the film begins to shrink and separate from the non-shrinking emulsion. An improper developing process is a favored explanation for why some films seem more vulnerable to this decay than others. A chemical sealant used in a film rejuvenating process is another theory. The decay process is a chemical reaction and it is unstoppable once it starts and the gaseous products of deterioration can damage other films in the same storage area. Fading is a film deterioration effecting all color film ever made because color dyes have yet to be found that lack resistance to chemical decomposition. Some color dyes used in film emulsions fade slower than others. The probability of an active in-progress fading process is likely for films manufactured before 1982. Proper storage slows down the fading process significantly. A low cost approach to preserving these memories is to transfer your film movies to digital video tape or DVD-video. CY Technical and Professional Services can transfer your film (if it is still in good condition) to digital video tape and DVD-video. Putting these old memories on DVD gives you the opportunity to catch your own children putting the DVD in the player to watch grandma's and grandpa's wedding or one of your old family outings, even as they pretend to do something else. CY Technical and Professional Services is ready and capable of giving you the keepsake digital memories you expect. |
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