Remaking the First Hasselblad in Space
A stepping-stone to the moon camera.
It was 1962. Astronaut Wally Schirra needed a camera for his mission as the third American to orbit the Earth. A photography enthusiast, he picked up a Hasselblad 500C from his local camera store and worked with NASA engineers and a contractor from RCA to modify it for space flight.
By going through the tedious process of remaking this camera, you begin to uncover its secrets and the thought processes that went into making it space-worthy. It was the seed that eventually cemented Hasselblad’s relationship with NASA as the de facto space camera maker. And it was the project that taught me the skills required to eventually make a functional lunar camera.
This particular camera was used in coordination with researchers from NOAA and the Department of Defense to determine what filters would be most amenable for future weather and spy satellites. A special dark slide was made that used multiple color filters that allowed scientists to study what worked best for the upper atmosphere, cloud heights, and clarity of certain land masses. We still rely on those findings today.
A look at the modifications
Roland “Red” Williams worked as a camera technician for RCA, a contractor for the newly announced American space program. Little did he know he’d be tasked with modifying the cameras we’d send with our first astronauts in space.
Wally Schirra (Center) and Roland “Red” Williams (Right) going over how the modified camera was to be used.
The original space-flown Hasselblad 500C, shown before and after. It now resides in a private collection.
Photo by RR Auction
Photo by RR Auction
A functional Mercury Hasselblad 500C replica, on display at Carl Zeiss headquarters in San Diego, CA.
Astronaut-proofing the camera
To prevent an astronaut from accidentally opening the film backs in space, the latch was removed and ground flat, replaced by two holes that were drilled for a spanner wrench later used by technicians on the ground. Due to the tight constraints of the mercury capsule, looking through the mirror and focusing screen was impossible, so a cold shoe (removed from the camera of the previous mission) was added a for an accessory viewfinder that allowed the camera to be shot close to the head while rotated 90 degrees to the right.
The 100% functional Mercury Hasselblad 500C replica by Cole Rise, on display at Carl Zeiss in San Diego, CA.
Paint it black
As an off-the-shelf consumer model, this Hasselblad 500C was fully chrome with a fine leatherette that could outgas in a vacuum, contaminating the photos. The modified camera stripped of all leather, and painted flat black to prevent reflections in the mercury spacecraft window, a characteristic that informed future Gemini and Apollo space cameras, and inspired the all-black look of professional cameras.
The first Zeiss lens in space
The 80mm F2.8 Carl Zeiss lens, the first in space, was heavily modified to remove features not needed for the mission, and make focusing easier with pressurized space gloves. The flash sync, depth-of-field preview, and timer switch were removed before painting and reassembly.
