Film Formats:

The Cost

$0.15 per foot of film digitized. [For reference, a full 3 inch reel of film holds 50 feet; a full 7 inch reel holds 400 feet.]

Once film is digitized, transfer of film to digital device -- DVD, flash drive, hard drive -- is $10.00 per half hour.

Flash drives supplied by VideOccasions are billed at market prices, about $6.50 for an 8gb drive, $10.00 for a 16gb.

Digital Formats and Storage Devices

DVDs hold two hours of source material (i.e., your film or tapes.)

Data delivered on USB flash drives will be in the MP4 file format.

AVI and MP4 files can be delivered on customer-supplied hard drive. Hard drive must be PC compatible.

Please contact VideOccasions™ at 425-641-4811 or by email if you have any questions.

• What we can transfer:

  VideOccasions transfers 8mm, Super 8mm and 16mm films, silent or with sound, directly to the computer.

• How we transfer:

  8mm and Super-8 film is transferred through the use of Elmo projectors, which digitize the source material as it is projected. 16mm film is projected into a camera and passed to the cmputer via a digitizing device.

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• Limitations and Caveats:

  Think of transferring your old films to a digital format as a rescue and recovery mission.

  You're probably bringing old film to VideOccasions because you don't have a projector with which to view it, your film contains scenes which are valuable to you and the film is "really, really old;" You want the work done at a reasonable price; and you prefer to deal with a reliable local company.

  The film we see at VideOccasions is often in pretty sad shape. Transferring it to tape or DVD won't improve the image quality, but it will prevent further deterioration. Since we don't know what images on the film are important to you, we capture what's on your old film warts and all. Parts that you don't want can be edited later.

  We can't capture what isn't on your old film -- crisp color when color has faded; sharp focus when the original is out of focus; steady shots when the photographer bounced the camera around while shooting.

  So please understand: what's on the film will still be there when it's digitized.

  Film Speed, the "Keystone Cops" effect, and Sound Distortion:

  Old film -- especially 16mm film -- presents another problem. The standard frame rate today for projecting film is 24 frames per second (fps). In years gone by, however, film enthusiasts sometimes shot at slower frame rates. When projected at today's standard, figures shot at these slower speeds appear to move about the screen in an unnaturally rapid manner. Sound also suffers, changing in pitch depending upon the original frame rate.

  At VideOccasions all 16mm film is digitized at the standard frame rate of 24 fps, 8mm and Super-8mm at 18-20 frames per second. Since we had no control over the speed at which your film was intended to be projected, we can assume no liability for transfers in which the movement of figures appears to be unnatural. Projection speed also affects sound, and since we have no control over how the sound was originally recorded, we can assume no liability for the quality of sound in the transfer from the film to digital format.

  If you'd like to discuss the options available for possibly adjusting film speeds , adjusting sound distortion, and for the image enhancement of old film, please contact VideOccasions at 425-641-4811 between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., Pacific (Standard or Daylight) Time, or send us an email.

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• Handling of film: A Bad Idea

  Old film tends to be very brittle, and the less it is handled the better. Since it has been tightly rolled on its spool, very little dust or dirt will have found its way onto the film surface. Therefore, film is transferred "as is;" it is not cleaned or lubricated prior to the transfer.

  On large spools of film, if splices separate during transfer the film is re-spliced so that the transfer may continue.

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• Sequencing and labeling:

  If there is a sequence in which the reels of film are to be transferred, please number the reels accordingly. Mark directly on the reel with a felt pen, or use a small piece of masking or paper labeling tape. Do not use "Post-Its," please, as they are likely to fall off in shipment or handling.