In the life of a roll of Super 8 film – particularly once archived or stored – there are few occasions when the material film, the photographic object, should need to be handled like a loose photographic print. There is the cliched image of a person holding up a length of celluloid to the light for inspection, but with 8mm film the images are very small. With experience, it is possible to infer that the camera was exposing the film correctly and that the processing had not malfunctioned by a unmagnified inspection. If the subject (referent) is easily discernible such as a mid-shot of a person against an even background or the depiction of landscape, horizon and sky the viewer could recognise – see the tai chi practitioner clip on a Cornish beach being inspected in Cutting the Film (Figure 14) – the naked eye can discern what is on the film but not whether the subject was in focus or the film was held stable behind the camera gate each time the shutter exposed it to light. If the reversal film had not been exposed, the reel would be black, overexposed it would be transparent. Physical damage such as damaged sprocket holes or long scratches would indicate a camera problem, or trauma inflicted during processing or viewing.
phd journal