How to Care For Home Movies

We know you're pretty psyched to have found the footage from your first trip to Disney World, but hang on: You should examine the film or videotape first to see if it's even playable. If it's in bad shape, you could damage it even further by shoving it into an ancient projector or player. You can fix some film problems -- like broken splices and torn side perforations -- but it's often more difficult to repair a videotape without destroying the case. If you're dealing with 8- or 16-mm film, here are a few signs that it might need professional help (or be beyond repair):

If you find out that your film is viewable -- and your projector is in working order -- by all means, go ahead and enjoy the footage of your 2-year-old self meeting Mickey and Minnie. But how do you store it when you're done?

If you want to preserve your memories in their original state, there are specific storage requirements for each format -- none of which involves attics or basements. And if you're dealing with a bunch of different formats, you can't just dump them all in one box. Here's what you need to do:

If all this seems like a huge hassle -- or you don't think you can maintain the right conditions -- you can always store your movies at a professional archive. Whatever you decide, though, you need backup. On the next page, we'll talk about converting your movies.

Film purists might insist that watching Super 8 movies with a projector and screen is the only way to go. But let's face it: It's a whole lot easier to enjoy them on DVD. And even if you have your film perfectly stored, disasters happen -- you should absolutely convert your movies to a digital format to make sure you never lose them.

If you have your film or videotapes professionally converted to DVD, make sure to get a master copy of the footage on industrial digital videotape -- not every company does this, but it's well worth the extra expense. That way, you'll always have a backup if you lose or damage a DVD, and you'll easily be able to convert your movies again whenever the next newfangled format pops up. And it's probably a good idea to put the backup tape in a safe deposit box.

You can also convert your movies on your own -- we'll talk about that on the next page.

There are a number of ways to convert your movies into a digital format -- some are more effective than others, of course. Videotape might be easiest: You can buy a VHS-to-PC converter that plugs directly into your computer (it should also work with old camcorders). Film-to-digital is more problematic. You can go old-school and use a camcorder to record the action from the movie screen, but the resolution will obviously be pretty bad. There are other methods, but most of them are fairly complicated and involve outdated and hard-to-find equipment. We say pony up the dough and get it done right by a professional -- but do your research and make sure you get that digital backup (and your originals returned, of course). Be sure to keep the originals! As we've learned, film can outlast any other format -- it would be a shame to throw it out.

For more information on home movie preservation, go to the next page.