The French-made Eclair NPR (Noiseless Portable Reflex) 16mm camera, designed by Andre Coutant and introduced in 1963, was a motion picture camera with a great many "firsts" to it's name. The first of the so-called cinema verite motion picture cameras. The first 16mm camera built from the ground up to be noiseless without
the use of an external blimp. The first camera to offer factory-installed cableless crystal sync sound shooting. The first professional motion picture camera to offer coaxial magazines. The first camera ergonomically designed for more comfortable hand holding. The first camera to ever be modified for Super-16.
In later years, the Eclair NPR would take second fiddle to cameras like the Arriflex SR and the Aaton. In it's day though, back in the 1960's though the 1980's, the Eclair was THE camera used for the majority of independent and corporate films, documentaries and TV newsmagazines like CBS's "60 Minutes". In fact, you cannot open an American Cinematographer magazine from that period and not find it packed with articles about films being made using the Eclair NPR camera. Rugged, dependable, adaptable, reliable... all words used to describe this most prolific filmmaking tool.
What I have tried to do, with this web site, is provide some useful information on the features of the camera, the many accessories and options available for it and talk about some of the more well known films that were made using it.
Come with me back in time and learn about a camera that made filmmaking history. I think you'll find it a trip worth taking.
the use of an external blimp. The first camera to offer factory-installed cableless crystal sync sound shooting. The first professional motion picture camera to offer coaxial magazines. The first camera ergonomically designed for more comfortable hand holding. The first camera to ever be modified for Super-16. 
Eclair was THE camera used for the majority of independent and corporate films, documentaries and TV newsmagazines like CBS's "60 Minutes". In fact, you cannot open an American Cinematographer magazine from that period and not find it packed with articles about films being made using the Eclair NPR camera. Rugged, dependable, adaptable, reliable... all words used to describe this most prolific filmmaking tool.