The Roman philosopher Cicero said, "To know nothing of the world before you were born is to remain forever a child.
" This is true in any field of interest and, generally speaking, most iPod and digital camera buyers probably don't know a whole lot about the analog precursors to their high-tech tools.
That's a shame, because the story of how we all got from "there" (bakelite phones, wire recorders and record players in the '50s) to "here" (iPhones, digital recorders and mp3 files).
In the case of cameras, just a quick look at the story of Bolex is most educational.
The fact is, filmmakers are still using the wind-up, low-tech Bolex cameras over 80 years after the company was founded, with cameras from 50- to 70-years-old being the "sweet spot" for working collectibles.
The film exposed in these units can be digitized and edited on computer workstations like any other digital footage, but it has the deep color from the film and the optical beauty of the Hugo Meyer and Zeiss lenses.
The past and present meet, to be sure, with a Bolex.
Founded in 1927, Bolex International is a Swiss manufacturer of 8mm and 16mm motion picture cameras and, with such partners as Hugo Meyer in the early days and Zeiss today, high-quality lenses, as well.
Their famous products were essential ingredients in the growth of early television news coverage and were also an immediate hit with makers of documentaries, nature and sports films, avant garde projects and animated features.
While a few later models are electric-powered, most made since the 1930s use a spring-wound clockwork drive.
The introduction of the Bolex H-16 in 1935, which can be easily converted to Super 16mm, solidified the firm's reputation for high-end engineering and optics.
The cameras are so well designed and built that original features of the H-16 are present, with few significant changes, in the models now being made.
There are many 50- to 75-year-old Bolex cameras still in use today.
There are many lovingly maintained Bolex cameras for sale from collectors and specialty dealers if you do not want to buy a new one (they are expensive).
Used models will save you some money, but don't expect a bargain basement price on any Bolex that has been well maintained.
If you want an H-16 you should avoid early models with the antiquated double-sprocket drive, as they require double-perforated 16mm film that is nearly impossible to find.
Post-1952 H16 models with serial numbers higher than 76471 use modern single-perforated film.
Finally, if you will be using big, heavy lenses you may want the bayonet mount featured in more recent versions of the H-16.
Filmmakers who have settled on some other "look" will use whatever tools "get them where they want to go.
" For many today, that means using state-of-the-art digital cameras from Red, Sony, Canon and many others.
Great effort has been put into getting the rich, saturated look of film through filters, camera settings and (of course) post-production processes.
But there remains a group of dedicated auteurs that insist on using a Bolex or other oldie-but-goodie, even if they do convert the film to a digital file for editing and final production.
The film world, and ours, is all the richer for their efforts.