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This isn't every camera I've owned, but it is every significant camera that I owned and that was also used in my film-making projects over the years. Also each of these cameras had a significant influence on my future careers and occupations.
Vista 8 (Regular 8mm)
1965
This camera was my very first movie camera. It did not even have "F" stops, just a "cloudy" and a "sunny" setting. It also ran "under speed" at about 12 fps instead of 16 fps (the standard Regular 8mm speed). Still, it launched a continuous series of upgrades and within 2 years I was shooting "sound on film". That's not impressive now but in 1968 no one was shooting sound on film except a few thousand people in the entire USA. Good times even from the beginning. My very first roll of film was a story film with sets and actors and I kept that up until 1984 with my first and last video drama.
This is the only camera on this page that I still own. It's on display in my family room.
Technicolor non-zoom 8 (Regular 8mm)
1966
This camera was used extensively from 1966 to1967 until I bpought the Minolta Zoom 8. I later sold this camera to my mom though she never used it much. Even though another camera came before this, this was the first camera with a tripod mount and a decent exposure system. It really moved me forward on my film making pursuits.
Minolta Zoom 8 (Regular 8mm)
1967 - 1971
This camera was used extensively from 1967 to 1971 and was used when no sound was needed at the time of shooting. The sound film I shot in 1970/1971 was shot on a Fairchild Sound camera but the bulk of the film's "MOS" shots were done with this camera. It was one of the most reliable cameras I ever used with predictable and consistent results. (MOS means: without sound).
Fairchild Sound Zoom (Regular 8mm)
1967 - 1971
Almost 8 years before the Super-8mm Sound cameras (as seen in the film "Super 8") were manufactured for home and professional use, I was shooting sound on 8mm with my friends in 1968 which amazed everyone including me. Compared to the Minolta these cameras didn't work that well. Between 1967 and 1970 the camera was replaced twice by the guy who sold it to me. They suffered from battery issues, pull down claw stability, and light leaks. Still it taught me a lot about shooting images with sound. In 1969 I finally bought a Sears (Bell and Howell) 8mm projector with a fast clutch drive that allowed me to dubb sound so the need for the Fairchild was greatly diminished. Still, fond memories of making two sound movies with Jr. High and later High School friends.
Bolex P2 (Regular 8mm Camera)
1970 - 1971
The P2 was a bit late in the game for me and it was my last Regular 8mm camera. The role that it served was it gave me the ability to do dissolves in the camera. This by no means a big deal now but at the time it was amazing to have a variable shutter that could create a fade out and then a crank to "back-wind" the film for the length of the fade out and then fade in to create a smooth transition. It also had through the lens metering which gave it really great exposures and since it was not auto-exposure (you set it and then shot) it resulted in sharp striking images that did not flicker or change exposure during the shot. I used it for several different films including one called: "A Time to Live" which had a dissolve at the end of almost every shot and was strictly pictures and music. I seldom used the handle since tripod shooting yielded what I wanted better and I also used a shutter release to get smooth starts and ends to each shot.
Bolex 160 Macrozoom (Super 8mm Camera)
1971 - 1991
This camera loaded the Super 8mm film on the left side like a Regular 8mm camera and macro zoomed in the telephoto setting so that it could focus incredibly close. I used Regular 8mm from 1966 to 1972 but this camera really gave me the quality I wanted and for the most part it was a metal camera instead of plastic. The last use of this camera was 1989 when I realized that SVHS would be cheaper and easier for "home movies" and was so superior to VHS that with the high cost of film it was an easy change.
Auricon Cine-Voice CM72 with Sync Motor (16mm camera)
1971 to 2006
I not only owned this Auricon but I used it extensively from 1971 to 1985. After that it was kept in working order but never used again, other than periodic system tests. This is the one camera I wished I'd never sold.
I realize this is a bit of an emotional attachment to a camera that I used a lot.
For more on Auricon cameras: Auricon 16mm Cameras.
Sankyo Sound XL-40S (Super 8mm Camera)
1975 to 1977
This camera was used to mainly shoot one project; to complete my Media Technician degree in June 1976. There were issues even that day but it seriously failed over just the ensuing six months with exposure fluctuation whenever a sound cartridge of Super 8mm was used, to hair between the lens and the film gate that I could not clean.
It did complete the project. I was able to finish the sound dubb on a Bolex Super 8mm sound projector that I had at the time (should have kept that) so I received a really good grade for the final project.
I sold the camera at some point for a few bucks. Even the Fairchild regular 8mm had issues not dissimilar to this camera.
Bolex Rex 5 (16mm camera)
1980 to 2005
Owned but never used except for a test roll. Even with the portability the Bolex gave me, the Auricon had a much steadier image. I also appreciated how quiet the Auricon was. Financially I just could not afford to use the Bolex. Owning it was the real goal but getting rid of it was just as important in 2005. This was the exact configuration I owned.
Dave Holmes while shooting "Street of Dreams, Feet of Clay" in 1970 with the
Minolta Zoom 8. --- Photo by Bryan Johnson.
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