The Bolex H8

Specifications:

Lens Mount: 3 lens revolving turret with C-Mount (D-Mount on older models)
Exposure: External Manual only
Frame Rate: 12,16,18,24,32,48 & 64
Motor: Clockwork - 1 wind will allow approx 45sec filming at 18fps
Filter Size: Dependant on lens type or matte box
Film Capacity: 25-100ft
Other features: Variable shutter, single frame and back winding.

Filming Experiences:

Arguably the king of the 8mm cameras. Like the VW Beetle the basic shape of the H8 changed little over the years but Bolex continually improved and developed it so if you are planning on buying one it pays do to a little research beforehand as some models are more usable than others. A good place to start is the Bolex Collector website. The Bolex philosophy seems to have been to keep the camera simple but make available an infinite number of accessories from matte boxes to crystal sync motors.

The H8 is a semi-professional camera with little concession to the amateur home movie maker. There is nothing in the way of automation, everything has to be done manually which is just what professionals prefer. But with a little time and patience you will be well rewarded as the results, especially on the later cameras with a registration claw (after serial no 97800), are rock steady and seldom bettered.

Taking up to 100ft loads which yield 200ft of finished film this has got to be the most economic camera to film with. Some have even had a 400ft magazine saddle added giving an incredible 800ft, that's 64 minutes, from one roll of film. Other cameras have been converted to Double Super 8 but personally I would steer clear of these as the processing and film stock options are very limited. If you want a wider image a better solution might be to use an anamorphic lens or even, as was popular in the 1950's', have the gate widened (called Span 8, more info can be found here)to use the area between the sprocket holes utilizing almost the whole 8mm width.

Many people say the H8 is a big and heavy camera to lug around but I have not found it to be that much more than any other Standard 8 camera especially if you stick to using the smaller and lighter prime lenses as some of the zooms admittedly can be a bit heavy and cumbersome.

It's not really practical for spontaneous types of film making but using this camera will make you a better film maker because it does make you think more about everything you do and stepping up to 16mm will be second nature after using one of these. Indeed a lot of the accessories are interchangeable between the H8 and H16.

The only small niggle I have about the H8 is it's lack of behind the lens filter slot unlike the H16. So finding filters for some of the lenses can be a problem these days unless you stick to daylight films or use a matte box filter set up which will add to the weight and bulk of the camera.

If you do decide to buy one then it's worth having it serviced, after all if you are going to spend the extra buying an H8 it's crazy not to look after it!

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