Since we started this journey into making our own family history video to be archived, we have tried our best to teach you how to digitize every type of medium (photos, 8mm film, slides, negatives, etc.) and how to capture new footage interviewing family members. In Wednesday’s blog, we likened the movie Boyhood to our family history stories. 

Speaking of boyhood…This week is our grandson’s 15th birthday (see picture.)  It was such fun going through our digitized old tapes to give him a video of himself on his first birthday and the following few months.  Doing that exercise on each family birthday this year has been a wonderful side benefit to digitizing all the videos and pictures that make up our lives.

So here’s your ‘to do’ for this week:

As you go about digitizing your photos and videos to add to the family history archives, don’t forget to enjoy the here and now.  Take more photos and videos as you see family and friends.  Those will be treasures one day. Call it your Labor Day of love.

In school, we always learned that a good story has a beginning, a middle, a climax and an end.  Since families’ histories technically go back to the birth of mankind, it will be difficult to start at the beginning.  And since you are alive to gather and tell your family’s stories, there really isn’t an end.  Some families have a bit of drama or a defining moment that affected and changed the lives of many of those that followed, but many will have a difficult time pinpointing a person or event.  That leaves most of us with a middle. Hmmm.  What are we supposed to do to make our story compelling?

Has anyone seen Boyhood?  It tells the “story” of a boy from the age of six to young adulthood.  The filmmaker shot a few weeks per year over a period of 12 years using the same cast.  This way he could capture the reality of these people and their relationships growing over that period.  Um.  Isn’t that what we do when we capture our family’s history?  The difference is that we work and research really hard to find our history and the proper names of our ancestors, where they settled and possibly why they left one place and went to another.

The reality of Richard Linklater’s work is groundbreaking for the film industry but it is par for the course in the genealogy and family history world.  No beginning, no real end, no huge climax that needed a hero to step in and win over the bad guys; just a collection of day-to-day activities that make up our lives.

There is buzz about Boyhood winning an Oscar. While I don’t think any of us will win Oscars for our family history videos, I find true reality much more compelling.  

It’s been seven weeks since our last ‘recap and refocus’ blog.  The first six weeks began our journey to capture, digitize and archive your family’s history and stories in a video and accompanying book that can be accessed by generations yet to come.  Those weeks were mainly about checking what we had, digitizing photos and interviewing. The second seven weeks made it a priority and looked at how to digitize the odd or non-traditional.

Week 8. We made it a priority.  We got “Around to it.” We learned how to organize and tag the scans we were taking by changing the titles and adding comments to the ‘Properties’ of the digitized copy. We realized that ANYTHING we do now will be appreciated by future generations.  We began to schedule time each day, week, or month to scan and organize our scans.

Week 9. We learned a bit about taking pictures so we could capture the non-traditional memorabilia. We set up a home ‘studio’ with simple, everyday supplies and a camera.

Week 10. We learned how to digitize negatives and slides.  (video)

Week 11. We learned how to digitize the odd-sized negatives from old medium format film. (video)

Week 12. We spoke about taking time to reconnect with family.  That always brings up new stories and new things to scan or photograph.  Make taking time to reconnect a habit either with a yearly reunion or a monthly phone call or whatever works for your family.  Be sure to have your camcorder with you should the gaggle gather.

Weeks 13 and 14. We learned first ‘to do the math’ to see if digitizing your family’s 8mm movies could be sent to a professional or should be a do-it-yourself project.  Then we learned to do it ourselves. (video)

There are a couple more things that might need to be digitized - like voice recordings, stories or books or songs written by or performed by your family, and certainly all your research on the family tree – but you should have a good amount of family history and heirlooms digitized now.  If not, there’s no time like now to begin this journey of recording your family history and archiving it for future generations.

For the last two weeks we have covered digitizing your family’s old Regular 8mm and Super 8 reel-to-reel films.  First making the decision as to whether you should send your films to a professional or record them yourself.  While the math is a logical way to decide, there are emotions that come with watching your family’s old movies.  The warm emotions are that you’ll look at these films again, possibly sharing them with other family members, and remember an earlier time or those people in your life that were important to you but are now gone.  You may experience the heartbreak of watching your treasured film break as you work with it. (If that happens, don’t despair! Use a Wolverine to capture those frames.  Get it from our links page and watch our video Digitizing Negatives and Slides.)

I want to share a story.  As I was going through this process and watching all of my family films, I ran across one that was about 5 minutes long.  The entire film was the antics of a squirrel in someone’s backyard.  Ok, it was kind of cute and I’m sure that whoever filmed it had a fun time watching that squirrel that day.  However, I couldn’t help but wonder how I would have felt had I sent the film in to a professional to have digitized.  It was a 3-inch reel so 50 feet at a transfer cost of 20¢ per foot, it would have cost:

            $.20 x 50 = $10 plus a $20 set-up fee plus a $10 DVD plus shipping and taxes (at least another$10)=$50!!  The cheapest I found for a reel like that was $8.99 per 3” reel plus shipping to and from.  But their shipping was $34.99 totaling $43.98!!!  To find out it’s a squirrel! 

Now if that was the only reel of old film I had and I had no way to watch it, it still would have been cheaper to have sent it in than to buy an old reel-to-reel projector for $100 to watch it.  Disappointing, but cheaper.  And since I didn’t recognize the backyard in the film, I always would have wondered if the processing lab got my films of grandma mixed up with someone's who was really into squirrels!

So when we say “Do the math” there is no emotion and we assume that every foot of film is something to save for future generations.

There is one other thing that I hope you have learned these past two weeks:  Anything left in a medium that you can no longer see or share is as useless as that squirrel film.  If you don’t make the efforts to digitize them now they will be completely lost within a generation.  Save your family's history. Start digitizing today.

Today's blog is a video.  We show you what to look for  to find a good projector, set up a room and use your camcorder to digitize your family's old Regular 8mm and Super 8mm films.

Click here.  Enjoy!

This week is a ‘Do It Yourself” (DIY) lesson on how to digitize your Regular 8mm and Super 8mm films.  This process is done best in a very dark environment.  Do you have a walk-in closet?  How about a bathroom without a window?  A dark garage?  Storage room? Laundry room? If you have none of these, you may want to consider doing all your taping after dark.  Or you can use a room darkening shade.  There is curtain backing material at the fabric store that totally blocks light.  Choose a room with the smallest window and cover it completely with that light blocking material using removable mounting tape.

You’ll need a sturdy flat surface to set your projector on.  Some foldable card tables may move with the heavy projector giving you flicker and bounce.  The floor will work but be prepared to lay on it and get up and down a lot. If you plan to use your washer or dryer, make sure they are not running and your environment is dry.  The noise isn’t a problem since most of your film probably does not have sound, but movement is a big problem.

You’ll need a screen of some sort or a white surface.  Buy an extra yard of that room darkening fabric to use as a screen or if you’ve totally blocked out the light from the window, maybe you can point your projector at that shade.  White posterboard works as long as it’s not too shiny.  I’ve used a trifold project board like children use for their science fair projects.  Just choose a non-shiny, flat, white surface that doesn’t have much of a grain to it.

You’ll need to rest your camcorder on something.  Obviously, a tripod would be best but use what you have as long as it is not your hand or shoulder.   Will you need an extension cord?  Does your camcorder have enough memory?  Do you have a can of compressed air?  That may come in handy to remove dust from your old projector. 

A darkened space and a little planning will truly help.  Oh, and you may want to grab some popcorn because when the family finds out what you are doing, they’ll want to watch!

1.      Identify what kind of movie films you have.  Regular 8mm, Super 8, or Super 8 with sound.

2.      How many of each do you have?

3.      What equipment do you currently possess?

• Working projector(s)? Does it play the type of films you have?
• Camcorder?
• Wolverine?

4.      Do the math.  If you send your films in to be digitized remember:

• 3 inch reels hold 50 feet of film
• 5 inch reels hold 200 feet of film
• 7 inch reels hold 400 feet of film
• Example:  A 5 inch reel at 20¢ per foot + $10.00 DVD + $20.00 set up fee = $70.00 + shipping.  If you only have one or two 5 inch reel, it may be smartest to find a reputable company to send it to and then extract what you need.

Should you decide that you are going to try to take this on yourself, stay tuned!  Next week we’ll show you how.

Now that you have identified whether you have Regular 8mm or Super 8mm reel-to-reel, (Monday’s blog) you now need to do some math to decide the best way to digitize them.  To digitize them yourself, you will need:

• A working projector (remember that if you have both Super8 and Regular 8mm you’ll either need separate projectors or a dual projector)
  

• Camcorder
  

OR

• A Wolverine (please click here to get it from our links page)
  

• And time (using the Wolverine is a frame by frame process.  Each frame takes about 12 seconds)
  

If you have either or both of those, stay tuned!  Next week we’ll go into detail on the process.

If you have none of those, then you need to do the big math questions.  Buy a piece of equipment or send it in to a professional service.  How many reels are you going to be digitizing?

Buying a camcorder (or using your smartphone) is a no brainer to me.  You’ll use one for family interviews or to simply capture life as it happens now.  Camcorders are a good investment.  A projector is another thing.  I have a graveyard of projectors.  You can’t get them new anymore yet they are still protected by patents.  Your only option is to buy used and it is easy to get burned.  The first thing to look for is that it is in working condition and HAS been tested WITH FILM.  Just because the motor makes noise or the wheels turn does not mean it will show film.  You’ll pay between $75.00 and $175.00 for a decent one on eBay.  

If you only have one or two reels, you may consider sending them in to a professional service.  There are, however, things you need to consider.  First, think about the safety of your films. When you take them to a national chain pharmacy or big box store, they are not being done on premise.  That means you are relying not only on an unknown third party’s expertise, but also the employees at the store following procedure to get your items shipped correctly AND the shipping company to deliver your precious memories timely and without incident. 

Secondly, and just as important, you need to be sure that what you get back is editable by you.  Costco, CVS, Meijer, Rite-Aid, Sams, Walmart all use Yes Video.  That means you will receive a DVD and your files will be in .vob files (Video Object files).  In all my different video software, none list .vob as a downloadable file.  It’s not that it can’t be extracted but you do have to have a little more computer knowledge to do it.  cnet has a free download available so it’s not impossible.  Expect to pay $80 for each 7-inch reel (about 25 -30 minutes of film) $20 for each 3-inch reel (4-5 minutes of viewing time).  If you consider sending them to someone, check online for other options.  Many of those will remaster your film too at minimal costs and provide it back to you in HD, editable, avi files.  Some will put your films onto a storage drive instead of a dvd which would retain more purity and allow you to easily use only what you want to use.

This is probably one of the most expensive and yet the most rewarding parts of this journey.  Video tells so much about a person that a picture just can’t capture.  It’s engaging.  It’s worth passing on to future generations.

This week we are going to look at how to digitize your old Regular 8mm and Super 8 films.  First recognize that these are old.  16mm film was used until Kodak split it down the center and brought us 8mm film in 1932.  It was used first to bring movie watching into the home with the growing movie industry trying to reach even the most rural of audiences. As cameras became more affordable, 8mm became consumers’ favorite until 1965 when Kodak brought us Super 8.  Super 8 had smaller holes leaving more room on the film for the picture – hence, Super 8.  In the early 1970’s, a sound track was added to the Super 8 but most homes didn’t have a projector with sound playing capabilities and the beta vs. VHS wars were in full swing.  Since a new technology was on the horizon, few bought the cameras or projectors that would allow the everyday consumer sound tracks to their home movies.

Because the sprocket holes are different sizes with different spaces between them, they MUST play at separate speeds on separate cogs.  Just look at the picture to see that one sprocket hole may match up but then each one separates just a bit more.  That means we have to use two different projectors or a projector with dual-settings. 

Do you have any old reels of film?  Time to identify what you’ve got!

Each week this blog tries to add a step to the process of capturing, digitizing and archiving your family history to pass it on to future generations via video and book.  We introduce a new concept each Monday; expand on that concept on Wednesday; give a task on that concept on Friday.

This twelfth week of the process, we have been talking about reconnecting with family and our family’s past.  I shared how a simple letter from my father to his family written during WWII struck me.  I’d like to give your family a similar experience.  The task this week should be interesting.  Interesting now and fifty years into the future - maybe even further into the future than that!

The attached form is for you.  Click here.  Print it out and hand write your answers.  Then save it for future generations to see.  Don’t forget to date it.

P.S. I have other ideas for this exercise page so you may want to make a copy.  Put your original away for safe keeping and file the copy with your family history research – or scan it and keep the digital copy in your family history folder on your computer.