Film transfers
tuscaloosa

Your old films digitally restored and ready to enjoy using the devices you use every day.

16mm film was introduced in 1923. It is 16mm wide (~5/8 inch). It either has sprocket holes on both edges, or just a single set of holes on one edge. The latter type is called single perforation film and includes an optical audio track running down one edge of the film.

8mm film was introduced in 1932. It is 8mm wide (~5/16 inch) single perforation film. It goes by a few different names including Standard 8, Regular 8, and Double 8. I very rarely includes sound.

Super 8 film was introduced in 1965. It is 8mm wide (~5/16 inch) single perforation film. Super 8 uses smaller sprocket holes than Standard 8 to allow more film real estate for the images, providing a much improved quality. Sometimes we will encounter an audio track, but most Super 8 film does not include sound. When sound is present, there will be a thin magnetic strip alongside one edge of the film.

video transfers
tuscaloosa

Digitize your videos and enjoy them using the devices you use every day.

VHS / S-VHS: (187 x 102 x 25 mm) The Video Home System (VHS) was introduced in 1977. It is the most common consumer-level analog videocassette magnetic tape format. S-VHS, or Super VHS was introduced in 1987 and is backward compatible with VHS. It provides a much improved horizontal luminance resolution of 400 lines versus 250 for VHS.

MINIDV: 65 x 48 x 12 mm. These very small cassettes are also known as S-size. MiniDV cassettes are used for recording baseline DV, DVCAM, and HDV. Each tape holds about 13 GB for one hour of video.

VHS-C / S-VHS-C: (92 x 58 x 20 mm) Introduced in 1982, the C stands for compact, which is really the only difference between VHS-C and standard VHS. The tapes can be played on standard VHS or S-VHS machines using a cartridge adapter. S-VHS-C tapes are a compact version of S-VHS and play in an S-VHS player with the same adapter.

VIDEO8 / HI8 / DIGITAL8: (95 x 62.5 x 15 mm) Three formats in one tape type. The first was Video8, introduced in 1985 and is an analog format similar to VHS, but with much-improved audio quality coupled with a very compact size. Hi8 (high-band video8), is a competitor to the S-VHS and S-VHS-C formats with an increased luminance of 400 lines. Finally, Digital8 utilized the same magnetic tape as Video8 and Hi8 to record a digital signal for even better performance.

PROFESSIONAL AND PAL: We can also transfer a number of professional formats as well as foreign tapes recorded in PAL. Contact us to confirm what you have and we will give you a quote for your specific format.

PHOTO transfers
tuscaloosa

Slides, prints, and negatives digitized and ready to share.
Everybody’s going to like them.

Slides: Standard slides have a frame that is roughly 1.5 inches wide and 1 inch tall, typically mounted in cardboard which is a 2 by 2 inch square.

Film Negatives: 35mm negative film was the most used film format of the analog era. Typically cut into strips of 4-6 frames, with an equal frame size to slides.

Printed Photos: We scan most picture sizes. We can also scan postcards, newspaper clippings, and other paper items you may have.

audio transfers
tuscaloosa

Sweet analog sound, easy digital playback.

Vinyl: Originally called a gramophone record in 1887, it is also known as phonograph record, vinyl, LP or simply, record. There are three sizes: 12, 10, and 7 inches in diameter. Although it is a very old format, it is still highly regarded by many audiophiles for it’s sweet, warm sound.

Vinyl records are notoriously fragile and must be very carefully handled and stored to maintain the integrity of the recording. Still, we are often able to transfer a badly scratched record, but with a significant loss in fidelity. Once we have it in the digital domain, there are some restorative procedures we can take.


Compact Cassette: 8mm film100 x 64 x 8 mm. Introduced in 1962, audio cassettes were the first mainstream method of consumer audio recording and distribution. The 3.81 mm tape can have a variety of track layouts: two wide mono tracks, two stereo tracks, or 4 mono tracks. Audio quality varies significantly with tape formulation and on the condition of the deck it was recorded on. 


Mini Cassette: 56 x 34 x 8 mm. Also called Micro Cassette, it was designed for use in personal recorders and answering machines. The quality is slightly better than no recording at all.


Reel-to-Reel: 1/4 inch audio tape was the first widely adopted method of recording audio at home. We can transfer 3, 7, and 10 inch reels.


8-Track Cartridge: 133 x 102 x 23 mm. Introduced in 1963, the 8-track is a continuous loop of tape housed in a cartridge that incorporated a neoprene rubber and nylon pinch roller. This reduced the mechanical complexity of the tape player, but presented new problems because those parts were not designed to be serviceable. They would suffer from wear causing inaccurate playback speeds and tapes that would slip.