(With a grateful acknowledgement to Jimmy Hodges and Film Making of July 1978)

Leafing through my collection of old ACE and Film Making Magazines I came across this tailpiece to the Summer Holiday Special Edition of 25 years ago. I thought an update might give cause for reflection. I will indicate Jimmy's thoughts first.

is for atmosphere - beware sand and salt - still good advice.

A neutral density filter over the lens is a prudent protection and one I adopt for my DV camera as well (pardon mention of the 'D' word - but it's a wonderful medium for preserving and re-editing and revivifying old cine footage.).

B is for Bolex - the Jubilee model was highly rated and Beaulieu is mouth watering.

I don't have either of these as cameras - but my 18-5 Standard 8 and Super 8 projectors are magnificent examples of Swiss engineering - though they seem to run fast - but maybe my cameras now just run slow.

C is for cine in general - a word that sums up a terrific hobby.

Ten rolls of K40 then cost about £27. 10 still print films developed in 1978 cost about £50. Well today's figures are about £100 and £80 respectively taking an average Boots price on film cost and developing, so Cine is still pretty competitive if you allow 3 mins of film to equate somehow to 30 odd prints. I know which I prefer.

D for Drill. Know your Camera backwards - still the best advice today.

Perhaps today D would have to stand for Digital. The latter's success shows just how much people value the moving image. How dangerously smug cine enthusiast become when they review their archive - generally alive and well loved in contrast to ageing albums of old photos - oh and date and detail - do put and keep these with your films for future reference. A Database is most useful for ready access to all that information.

E stood for Editing. Leave it to the autumn and the dark evenings.

Hardly the advice you can give the 'me now' digital generation. But note the plethora of editing programmes - if you have learned your skills at cine you have much to teach the next generation. I am hard at work training my son-in-law. JH concluded: "Get a new bottle of cement - stale liquid will give you headaches and heartaches" !!

F = f stops and foul ups if you haven't got it right.

How wonderful to open up the stop for a real close up and blur out the background. Needs a bit of time and checking - but all part of the creativity. As Jimmy observed nature can sometimes shove more light through the lens than technicians say is possible. F is for focus and Film Making (Alias Movie Making) the Magazine you must have.

G "Guide, or in other words camera or projector instructions".

Well you need a degree in semantics and semiotics to translate a modern video handbook - I quote "Mode cannot be changed in PC connection mode by rotating off/on/mode switch." Cine Camera guides in my experience were useful, but eminently brief. My Leicina Super 8 booklet runs to 30 very small pages (1/4 A4) and most of that helpful pictures - complete with a laminated mini-instruction card for 'instant' filming checks. Contrast that with 51 dense packed A4 incomprehensible pages of 'prose' for my Panasonic DV!

H "Hi-Fi naturally. We all want it on the little gauge - get it on the big tape first."

Well I like the Sony professional for those 'real' sounds - but never having mastered lip-sync - I settle for loose sync - 'Sound Sense' by Ivan Watson (Fountain Press 1973 is a gem - found mine in Hay on Wye for a couple of pounds.

I Instamatic - the point and shoot brigade - for the people who catch good shots unhindered by a plethora of buttons.

I like my Eumig Mini 5s for lightweight robust filming. I took some wonderful shots of Dolphin and Gannets from a bounding semi rigid inflatable -in Pembrokeshire this year - over the side in the depths of the Atlantic - where no video man would dare to venture.

J - ams shouldn't happen to the cartridge brigade. Tap the side just in case before bunging into camera..

Along with others I suffered some poor cartridges a year ago - but recent supplies seem to be fine. Excellent value from Photoworld at around £10. (Plug).

K well it had to be the Big Yellow - but no it didn't.

Jimmy plugged Agfa - which I used to like too. Very intense blues for my sea cines. Alas no longer with us, though the range of emulsions from Kodak is still impressive - with lamentable exception of the pending demise of Standard 8. (See Widescreen Centre). I have just used up some rather old Black and White stock on nostalgic steam railway - can someone tell me why B&W is not dated?

L is for lens. Try before you buy was the message here - and don't turn your nose up at turrets - three prime lenses may be better than a zoom.

I picked up a lovely Fujica 8 T3 for a tenner and it gave superb results. All clockwork and no batteries. Strapped to a chariot for a real David Attenborough tracking shot of our hound at speed - in slow mo of course with its 32fps.

M for movement - Cine types too often fall into the trap of MOVING their camera.

Well seen any Home Videos recently? I had to chain by Son-in-law's arms to stop him hose-piping.

N a plug for Noris - a top manufacturer devoted to customer service.

I have a Norisound, several Norimats, and an SM 200. Sadly the Norimats with their built in cassette sound never quite lived up to expectations in the sonic department - but the projection mechanics and lenses were superb - though you can't beat the Schneider Xenovaron for definition and flexibility.

O - optics - see under L - well Jim that's chickening out - I'll settle for optical framing - essential if you don't want to be fiddling with projector height all the time you adjust the frame.

P leads naturally to projectors. Does anyone have a 16mm / 9.5 they no longer want? Mine finally died. Mr Hodges advice was to get the best projector you can. I agree

Q - stood for Quartz and I think its successor is still being sold by Widescreen. My experience with one was not very successful but Widescreen cheerfully refunded the price. Jim said 'unlovely it may look but great to operate and built like a tank. I'm sorry if I upset, say, British Leyland, but you've got to hand it to the Russians." Ah those were the Cold War days.

R - how long before cameras in the cheaper range get this facility on Super 8? Well I have a Craven backwinder somewhere - my Leicina 8SV did an adequate job of a sort of lap-dissolve - but it was always rather hit and miss. You had to get up to the top of the range before cameras coped with this. Mind you - you can turn and film with a Camera upside down and see people running backwards if you splice the film in, in reverse. Trouble is you get a focus alteration with most projectors when you try this tip.

S along with 'W' is missing from JH's alphabet. Presumably for reasons of lack of space rather than any dodgy dossier. Well Sun Sea and Sand I have already covered - so I'll settle for shoe - that irritating device that was meant to hold a movie light on the top of a super 8 camera and cut out the filter. It jams on my Nalcom and I have to get a pin to wiggle it out. Otherwise it's all blue films - or is it yellow? I never remember. My Leicina you have to adjust manually - but then who wants a scalding hot 1000W movie light one inch from their face anyway? As for Stripe - I never tried it - but many lament its passing.

T "I'll opt here for Tripod. Every good film maker should have one (only one?) Also for telephoto. Only use this device if absolutely necessary or for special effects. You can't beat getting in close....unless of course you're filming a mad elephant on Safari. In which case swap camera for a rifle (or see under R for reverse ...or in Retreat!)."

Jim's advice stands the test of time there very well! I will add Thermofilm - that magic ingredient that removed scratches from films - no doubt now banned under numerous EU Directives.

U - Ultra Violet rays - use a filter.

V meant variety of kit 25 years ago - "try lots of cameras before plonking your money down."

Well I would say variety of shots - change your camera angle - use cutaways - get down low or up on high - take a pet or child's view of the world! Try mirrors or the sky for fascinating titles... .

W went missing in 1978.

You could have Water - beware of it - I never had a Nautica - anybody try them? But I did get some good 'underwater' shots with a glass bottomed tin - or even just a glass to push below the surface and then film without the ripple effects - well OK ripple effects are alright in moderation.

X - Rays - beware airport scanners - 'draw attention of an official to the fact you are carrying gold'

Mm not sure about that today. If you are using Big K - and you are in Europe - well avoid them altogether - just post your exposed films off straight after usage to Switzerland and they will - well may be - waiting for you on your return home.

Y stood for Youngsters ' for some reason they are left out in the cold by film-making parents' I loved the film my son shot of Badminton - all from my waist height - what a different perspective - a child's eye view. My son-in-law did not take up the offer a mini 5 - he's in to digital editing - he will have to cut out all the wobbly shots!

ZZZ - a pie a pint and a znooozzzzze!!

Tom Halliwell - July 2003