Amateur Photographer – 20 July 2019

subscribe 0330 333 1113 I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk I 20 July 2019 45

http://www.zeiss.com/moon

On July 20, 1969, a collective dream became reality, with a footprint symbolizing this achievement: on that day, man set foot on the Moon for the first
time. The limits of what seemed possible were now redefined. When the ambition was set to send a man to the Moon and return safe back to Earth,
many people helped to make this dream of mankind come true. Thousands of engineers and technicians throughout all disciplines and countries got
involved. ZEISS became part of this challenge: camera lenses specially designed for space captured the iconic images of this monumental achievement.

engraved on it, known as a réseau

plate, was placed in front of the

film as an aid to identify the

distance of objects within any

image. Precautions were taken

to dissipate minute amounts of

static electricity that might build

up inside the body as a result of

the automatic film wind. With the

shutter in the lens, an auxiliary

shutter inside the body was

removed. Tabs were added to

the aperture, shutter speed and

focusing controls to make them

easier to use in gloved hands.

Specially modified 70mm film

backs were incorporated that

gave 150-200 exposures to

each loading on specially made

ultra-thin film. Both colour and

monochrome films were taken

to the moon.

The mission

The Data Camera was fitted to

a chest harness to allow the

astronaut freedom to carry out

tasks while keeping the camera in

a ready position. Armstrong was

the first man out of the Eagle

landing module to take the first

steps onto the moon’s surface.

He was the one with the camera

strapped to his suit, so he was the

one who took the pictures. That’s

why, despite Armstrong being the

first man on the moon, there are

so few pictures of him and so

many more of Aldrin, the second

man on the moon.

Remarkably, that modified

500 EL carried by Armstrong was

the only camera taken onto the

moon’s surface during the Apollo

11 mission and it worked perfectly.

History might have been written

(or photographed) differently if the

shutter or motor drive had

jammed, or if the lens hadn’t

stopped down as required. An

exposure guide was detailed on

the top of each film back, with

suggested apertures for a shutter

speed of 1/250sec: Full shadow

• 5.6, LM in shadow – 5.6, crew
  in sun – 11, LM in sun – 11.
  The initials LM referred to the
  Lunar Module and the numbers

indicated f-stops. Armstrong had a

rough checklist of suggested shots

to be taken sewn into his glove.

The iconic pictures taken

included footprints in the moon

dust, the American flag seeming

to flutter in a non-existent breeze,

and what has become known as

the ‘visor shot’. This showed Aldrin

standing on the surface and facing

the camera with the sun behind

him. Reflected in his visor, lit by the

sun, is the Eagle on its landing pad,

Aldrin’s shadow, experimental

apparatus that had been set up

and even Armstrong shooting the

picture. It was a picture destined

to go down in history. Record

shots were taken of the tasks

undertaken by the astronauts,

including seismic measurements,

solar wind observation, soil

investigation and a collection

of rock samples.

After a mere two-and-a-half

hours on the lunar surface

Armstrong and Aldrin re-entered

the landing module, where they

spent time resting and sleeping

before blasting off to rejoin the

orbiting command module for the

journey home. The camera that

was taken down to the surface was

left behind. Only the film backs

were brought home, in order to

save weight and compensate for

47 pounds of lunar surface

material that was brought back.

Leaving Hasselblads behind

on the lunar surface became a

tradition in the years ahead. It’s

thought that one Hasselblad from

the Apollo 15 mission made it

back, and a camera alleging to be

that very one was auctioned in

Vienna in 2014 with a hammer

price of nearly $1,000,000. But

by the time of Apollo 17 – the

last moon mission in 1972 – 12

camera bodies had been left

behind. Now there’s a priceless

find for the first camera

collector on the moon.

Buzz Aldrin with

the US flag seeming

to flutter in a

non-existent breeze

A Hasselblad

Data Camera,

alleged to be

the only one

that returned

from the moon

© NASA

© LEITZ PHOTOGRAPHICA AUCTION, VIENNA