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Film to DVD

Some customer may be wondering just how much information is actually on film!! That's a good question. The following images are a simplification to illustrate some general points. They are not exact and will vary based on specific film stocks.

8mm SD HD scan
  • 8mm and Super 8 film have a maximum resolution of 1000 horizontal lines.
  • A 480 line SD scan will only get about 50% of the details on the film.
  • To truly archive 8mm or Super 8 film it must be scanned at HD resolution.
16mm HD 2K 4K Scan
  • Older 16mm film has around 1500 to 2000 horizontal lines.
  • Newer 16mm and S16mm can have up to 3000 lines of resolution.
  • Although an HD scan is good, it only gets about 50% of the details from the film.
  • To archive 16mm film a 2k scan is required for older film and a 4K scan for newer film stocks with smaller film grain.
35mm hd 2k 4k scan
  • Older 35mm film has up to 3000 lines while newer 35mm film can have in excess of 4000 lines.
  • An HD scan only gets about 1/4 of the film's details.
  • A 2K scan (2048 ×1556) will get around 1500 horizontal lines or about 50%.
  • A 4K (4096 x 2160) scan will get the majority of the film details. Newer film stocks with finer grain will require a 6K scan in order to truly archive it.

 

16mm 2K Scan 16mm, 35mm dust busting