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Connect with your 8mm memories using YesVideo's app and a TUAW discount
Nothing says "analog" like a shoebox full of old videotapes, Super 8 movies and slides. Even if you wanted to watch them (or subject friends / kids to them), digging out the old projector or VCR is a dicey proposition. Converting film to video or digital storage is possible to achieve DIY, but can be daunting and/or expensive -- although with an HDSLR, the results can be pretty cool. If you'd rather pay than tinker, there are scores of shops and services, ranging from LargeCos to small local shops, that will happily tackle the task of digitizing your old media. One of the biggest in the space -- more than 10 million home videos made into bits already, $50 million in 2012 retail revenue -- is YesVideo. YesVideo offers convenient drop-off locations at thousands of drugstores, megamarts and shopping clubs, and it provides hosted Web access to your converted movies in addition to the traditional DVD delivery. Submitted movies and other materials are processed domestically in either the eastern (Norcross, GA) or western (Santa Clara, Calif.) YesVideo facility. Although the Web library at YesVideo is HTML5 savvy and works with iOS and Android, the company is taking the next step today and launching an iPhone app. Users can watch all their digitized content in the app, chapter by chapter or a full movie at a time. Clips are shareable over Facebook and via email, and of course the app is AirPlay-friendly for inflicting your memories on a roomful of people at once via your Apple TV. You can also track the progress of an open digitizing order in the app. Do you have one of those aforementioned shoeboxes hanging around? As a special treat for TUAW readers, YesVideo is offering a 30 percent discount on conversion orders until April 1. Prepare your order at direct.yesvideo.com, then enter "TUAW" in the coupon field. You can request an EasyShip Kit from YesVideo, or just ship your movies to the conversion facility in the box you're currently using to hold them (assuming it's not disintegrating from age and neglect).
Fully working Super8 film projector built totally out of Lego, well almost (video)
Projecting Super8 film is a largely unnecessary hassle these days, but those words are clearly meaningless to camera nut Friedemann Wachsmuth. His painstakingly constructed Lego projector runs at a rickety 24fps without mangling celluloid, and with only the most minor use of non-Lego components (lens, lamp, spindles, bah who's counting?). The contraption serves no purpose other than to hurl photons of pure geek passion at white-ish walls, and previous Lego viewfinders and shutter releases are mere pecks on the cheek by comparison. Turn up your volume before you hit the video because the rattliness of this thing is all part of the love.
Sony Handycam celebrates 25th birthday, can now film itself renting a car
Remember the Sony Video 8? No? Well, let's recap: it was 1985, and the company releases the CCD-M8 camcorder, capturing life on 8-millimeter cassettes at just under 2.2 pounds. "Back in my day" references notwithstanding, Sony is now celebrating the 25th anniversary of its Handycam line, from that progenitor recorder all the way up to today's SD card-equipped lineup. All the festivities and a pretty detailed trip down memory lane can be found via the source link, or if you're looking for something infinitely more cornball, Sony's produced a "commemorative movie" of sorts in honor of the anniversary -- that's after the break.
Your average inkjet can now print Super 8 / 16mm film
No doubt about it, vanilla inkjets seem to be garnering a whole lot of attention these days, and while the latest trick won't yield circuits or OLED displays, it could make filmmakers who long for days past quite excited. Jesse England has apparently discovered a fairly easy to automate process to print video frames onto transparency film. After discovering the dimensions for both Super 8 and 16-millimeter film, he simply made a template, arranged the filmstrip using Adobe's Premier and Photoshop, and printed it out on an everyday Epson inkjet. The noticeably manual task of punching out sprocket holes was still left to a hand-powered box cutter, but we're sure there are less tedious solutions just waiting to be implemented. As expected, the actual video quality was deemed "terrible," but the emotional impact was bittersweet indeed. Be sure to hit the read link for the whole low-down and to see a couple of video demonstrations to show you what the fuss is all about.[Via BoingBoing]
