Bought a $400 vintage camera for a scene and it broke on the first take

Found this old 8mm camera online for a period piece, thought it would add real texture. We loaded it with film, set up the shot, and the motor seized after about 30 seconds. Now I'm out the cash and had to use a modern camera with a filter anyway. Do you think it's ever worth the risk to use a real antique prop over a replica?

3 comments

3 Comments

noahs827d ago

Man that stings, sorry you had to deal with that.

matthew_wilson221mo ago

That 8mm film was probably the main problem. Old cameras can work fine, but the film itself dries out and gets brittle over decades. The extra tension from that old stock is what likely jammed the motor. For a working prop, you need to test it with modern film first. Replicas are safer, but testing is the real key either way.

aarons361mo ago

Good point about the old film, @matthew_wilson22. When you say test with modern film, do you mean just running a fresh blank reel through it? Or should you actually try to project some new 8mm footage to check the gate and claw movement under real load?