The best way to do this is to get a TV card that has an RF-in, or other input port that your 8mm camera supports as export, and then you use a TV recording application to record the video in a good format. Then, you load the file to Vegas and you export to DVD. Usually all that costs about $50.

Looks like the question is about 8mm film, not 8mm video.

Also, an A/V -> DV converter will be much much better quality than a $50 video card.

I have been transferring my families old Super 8mm and Regular 8 movie film to DVD too. It really is fun to see the old images again. The problem with projecting onto a white board and capturing with a video camera is that you will end up with a lot of flicker. I tried buying a cheap transfer box off of eBay and it was no better. I really wanted to end up with a good final product that I could edit and create DVDs for my family. After a lot of research, I finally found a REALLY good (although somewhat pricey) way of doing this. There is a company based out of Texas that custom makes transfer equipment that transfers each individual frame of the film. They can explain it much better than I can. Hopefully it is OK to post their web address (www.moviestuff.tv). I am in no way affiliated with them other than being a very satisfied customer. They really are great people to deal with. Good luck.

I agree - I had some 8mm film transferred by :
http://www.ahrensarchival.com/

Family owned and take care of your film, but don't be in a hurry. LOL The quality is excellent and no flicker. The software they use compensated for the difference in FPS.

You can also do a net search for a place near you or competitive pricing. Frame by frame 8mm transfer is THE BEST quality you can get.

Oops. I didn't notice that Chienworks mentioned the Workprinter. This is exactly what I have and it works great. I use a firewire transfer to my computer and use VMS Plat 7 for the editing.

I use the Workprinter XP which captures each frame of the 8mm film to a video frame via a PD150 and specialized hardware. It is captured to a file on my computer. It is then run through a program (Cinemate) which converts the 8mm fps (16) to NTSC standard (29.97). The resultant avi files are then loaded into Vegas, edited and output to DVD. This eliminates all flickering and hot spots, eliminates any chance of damaging the fillm (no heat from lamp) and captures a great looking image. A little bit of work, but you get what you work for!

A few supportive comments, no revelations;
I'm using a new Chinon 2500 variablespeed projector for both 8 and super 8mm film transfers via a white screen to videocamera. NO flicker problems, reasonably good image quality. We tried a transfer box,, but it just introduced more interface problems. We`are able to adjust the captured scenesin VMS8patinum tocustomer satisfaction.
If volume holds up, we might look at the Workprinter option.
To me the biggest problem is dust and keeping the film gate clean. Be sure to clean the film before running it thru your projector, and llook out for mold.
Reg

I too tried the variable speed projector and it did work but it simply can't compare to the quality of the output from the Workprinter units. I have even been able to take the transferred images and make stills within Movie Studio and print out copies and enlargements. I have movie film dating as far back as the late 30's. I thought about having someone transfer them for me but figured I could do it myself for the same or less cost if I purchased the equipment.

I always clean and condition the film before I start and have not had too much trouble with dust in the gate. For me, this is a fun way to preserve family history and was also one of the reason why I purchased VMS in the first place.

I take the raw, silent film, capture it as described earlier, and then import the avi file into VMS for editing. I also can add titles, transitions between clips, and background music that makes the final product much more enjoyable. It is a lot of work and can be a slow process but it is well worth it.

What do you plan to do with your workprinter when you're done?

At the rate I am going, I may never be done with my WorkPrinter. Life keeps getting in the way of my fun.

MovieStuff has a great deal where they will take your unit and rehab it back to near new condition for resale. I have seen many units sell on Ebay for as much or more than the original sale price. The main reason for this is that once someone decides to buy a unit, they often don't feel like waiting 4 to 6 weeks for a new unit to be built. They want to start playing NOW and are willing to pay more than the original price to get a unit quickly from Ebay.

At this point, I still have a couple thousand feet of my own film to transfer plus my brother has film he shot in Vietnam that he wants me to transfer. Who knows when I will be done?

4 -6 weeks? Try more like 3 - 4 months. Unless they are really getting them out faster now.

I'm really tempted to get a WorkPrinter, but unfortunately my camcorder only has 10x optical zoom. I am trying to find someone in my area who could loan me one, but so far no luck.

If any body reading this has experience with the WorkPrinter, what camera did you use?

I use a PD150 quite successfully.
They also recommend that you have a raid0 setup but I capture to a n external firewire 7500 rpm Seagate and it works just fine.

I am capturing with a Sony handycam TRV-250. I use a firewire to transfer to the computer and most of my files are saved onto a Seagate external hard drive. I do not have a RAIDO but because I am using a WorkPrinter-Jr (much slower but just as good), it is not needed.

Can't find WorkPrinter JR on the moviestuff web site. Is it discontinued?

I really wish I could use my camcorder. It's a Sony DCR-HC96, and has firewire output that works great! It does not make sense to spend a couple thousand to buy a professional video recorder, or even buy a new camcorder that has the required 14x magnification. But I really want to get a WorkPrinter and do the transfering myself. I have about 60 of the 3"-50' 8mm reels to transfer. Some friends of mine also have their own collection, and could make use of this system as well.

A lens attachment for my camcorder will only get me to 11 or 12x.

What about replacing the condenser lens so that it will have a different magnification suitable for a 10x camcorder? Would one of you with the WorkPrinter be willing to measure the diameter of the lens for me? How many lenses are there?

The WorkPrinter-Jr has been discontinued. I think most people were buying Roger's units for business purposes and did not want to put up with the slow speed of the "junior". For my purposes, it works fine. I know I have seen other posts where Roger at MovieStuff has said that a 10X zoom just won't work properly. I don't pretend to even come close to understanding all the details. Your best bet would be to give Roger a call and ask your questions. He really is great to work with and I'm sure will be happy to answer your questions. The other option would be to buy a cheap camera off of eBay just for this purpose.

The reason I decided to go with the WorkPrinter was that I had enough footage to transfer that it seemed to make good financial sense. It would definitely be easier to simply send my films to someone else but then I would end up having to still do a lot of the grunt work. This way, I can take my time and get it just the way I want.