The Nikon R8 (and its big sister, the R10) offer unmatched aethetics and unparalleled quality. Like everything Nikon does, they approached the development of the R8 and the R10 as a component system. The heart of the system being the camera itself, of course. Accessories such as the remote switch, the EA-2 tape recorder sync cord, and extensive macro photography items all established Nikon's approach to the super 8mm format as being complete and not leaving anything out. The R8 is no exception.

If you can excuse my logo placed across the picture (to help prevent use of it in online auctions), the control panel of both the R8 and the R10 are virtually identical. There is an additional aperture knob on the R10 but that same knob is located on the R8, just on the front instead. Above the PC contacts is a slider to open and close the viewfinder. There are two PC contacts: one for the tape recorder and the other for a flash. The T-W rocker switch operates the zoom lens. The F/S dial at the bottom controls the speed of the electric zoom. This camera offers in-camera dissolves, rewinding, and double exposure capabilities. To understand the operation of the film movement controls, REW=rewind, FOW=forward, OL=overlap, DE=double exposure, FO=fade out, and FI=fade in. Perhaps the most useful function of all of these options is the manually adjustable shutter. The camera offers a non-XL 160 degree shutter but also allows you to close it down by 1/2, 3/4 and fully closed. Note, the light meter is not coupled to this shutter movement so you should adjust it accordingly. This is easily accomplished automatically by turning the compensation dial to +1 or +2 respectively for either the 80-degree or 40-degree positions on the variable shutter dial. Also, the light meter is controlled by two PX-13 1.35 volt batteries (for 2.7v total). And no, you cannot use a PX-14 instead. I use two 625's that provide 3 volts total.

On the film door side, you can see the dial that allows you to override the exposure system by 2 stops over (for use indoors or for heavily backlighted subjects) or by 1 stop under exposed, like when you desire more saturation in your films. The S-C switch is to select single frame or continuous operation. The big circular door is where the light meter batteries go. The little R at the bottom of the picture is a button that has an L on the opposite side of it - it is for locking the trigger to prevent accidental exposure - it can also be used to lock the camera into the running position. The camera offers 18, 24, and 54 frames per second. Lastly, the M-P switch is a battery check for the light meter (m=mercury) and the main power batteries (p=power). As you slide the button, watch the light meter to swing to above f8 to give you an all is well indication.

The lens construction appears superb. The coating is typical of what you find on Nikon 35mm optics and that's a bit of a rare thing in the land of super 8mm optics. This picture shows how the whole zoom ring is gently pulled forward revealing the macro measurements in red. The zoom ring is incredibly light to the touch so you should have little problem using it (sparingly) in your productions. The focus is perfect, loose but firm, if that makes any sense. The camera runs on 6 AA batteries that are held in a special removable holder. Very handy for removing the batteries for when the cmaera is not in use. No loose battereis to chase around.

The film pressure plate is one of the main reasons this camera is so sought after by collectors. It offers TWO CLAWS for pulling down the film, an enlarged film gate opening (enabling you to quickly determine which camera shot the film you are looking at after the fact). There are also two tiny ramps that appear to do something in terms of helping overcome Kodak's shortcoming in the design of the super 8mm cartridge format (a perennial complaint and a crippling argument when trying to shout down those users who shoot regular 8mm or single 8mm). The important here is that not all super 8mm film gates are created equal. In this case, Nikon is more equal than others.