LomoKino lets you shoot VERY old school 35mm movies
The LomoKino Super 35 Movie Maker lets low-tech film-makers
shoot their own 35mm movies, by hand-cranking film through the device.
Video cameras now routinely offer features such as full 1080p
high-def video, night vision mode, and stereo sound ... if you're one of
the people who reads that and thinks "Big deal, that just means people
will have nicer-looking home videos," perhaps you would appreciate a
camera that's focused less on the latest tech, and more on the art of
moving pictures. Well, Lomography's new LomoKino Super 35 Movie Maker
should fit the bill. Paying homage to the original Chaplin-era movie
cameras, users hand-crank 35mm film through the box-like device, while a
fixed-focus lens captures all the jittery, grainy action.
According to the company, any type of 35mm still photograph film will
work - these could include slide film, color negative, redscale or
black-and-white. A full roll (we're assuming that means one rated for 36
exposures) should capture 144 frames, which in turn will result in
50-60 seconds of footage.
The camera itself has a 25mm f/5.6-f/11 fixed-focus lens - although
it can be shifted into close-up mode (down to 0.6 meter/2 feet) with the
push of a button. Shots are framed using a top-mounted optical
viewfinder, like those found on old twin-lens reflex cameras. Audio
recording is non-existent.
Each exposure is captured at one one-hundredth of a second, while the
user cranks the film through at approximately 3-5 frames-per-second.
Considering that "real" movie cameras typically shoot at 24 fps, you get
an impression of just how choppy the footage will look!
Before you can watch that footage, however, you'll have to get the
film processed. Once the finished roll is back, you will require the
LomoKinoScope to view it. Not a movie projector, the device is more like
a Nickelodeon, in which viewers watch the footage through a peephole while hand-cranking the film through.
The LomoKino is available via Lomography's website, for US$79. A package including the camera and the LomoKinoScope goes for $99.
By Ben Coxworth
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