Spacecraft Films

Special Combo Offer For a Limited Time...

Despite my original love of Apollo (and the reason I started Spacecraft Films in the first place), many of our customers consider our Project Mercury set to be our best. I share the fondness for this set - it does represent what I was hoping to achieve when I first set out to create Spacecraft Films. 

There are a few reasons - first of all the quality of the material is very good. During Mercury a great deal of the material was shot on 35mm film. Later, during Apollo, 16mm film was more widely used for documentation. The result was an excellent original source from which to make new transfers.

Secondly - the set is extremely thorough. It is packed with material you don't see often, and has comprehensive material on all of the development and unmanned flights as well as the manned flights. One just doesn't see this material presented properly.

And for me, lastly, Wally Schirra really loved this set. I never got to meet Wally, but traded several emails and talked during production. I was just about to meet him at one of the shows down in Florida, but he died before the show. He was good enough to give me some quotes to help market the set, and I was very pleased he found the set as positive a chronicle as he did. I'll always regret not getting the chance to meet him.

Anyway, I thought I'd feature this set today as I was looking around Amazon (Even though I sell some of our products on Amazon, I ship directly, and stopped fulfilling their inventory several years ago) and noticed that our Mercury set there is priced by a seller at over $500. You can get the same thing here for $84.99. Additionally, for a limited time only, you can get Project Mercury AND Project Gemini at a special combo price of just $99.99. PLUS I'll include the Freedom 7 DVD which contains a few extra items from the first Mercury flight.

Project Mercury/Gemini Combo

The Project Mercury Preview. Indeed, one of our very best sets.

Apollo 12 down to the Moon... 43 years ago...

Apollo 12 had some interesting photography among its onboard film. This short piece of the LM separating from the CSM is one of the best framed and most clear of the LM in flight. This is from an HD transfer, so make sure HD is on... (from our Apollo HD Onboards product)... Also, just after is the preview we set up for Apollo 12, which right now is being offered at a special price. (Apollo 12 3-DVD Set)

 

 

Cecelia "Cece" Bibby, 1928-2012

With sadness I learned last evening that Cece Bibby had left us. She designed and painted the insignia on the side of the Mercury spacecraft for Glenn, Carpenter and Schirra. She was a wonderful woman and I'm happy I was able to meet her on several occasions. When creating our Mercury DVD set I included some footage I found of Cece painting the insignia, and am sharing it today. Godspeed, Cece.

 

43 years ago today Apollo 12 launched for the Ocean of Storms...

In one of the most incredible close-calls of the Apollo program, on this date in 1969 Apollo 12 launched and was struck by lightning during ascent. The mission went on to be a success, but the launch was rather harrowing. 

In this clip from our Apollo 12 3-DVD set, combined from several clips of the launch (featuring different shots and different audio tracks), you'll see the launch of Apollo 12 with the onboard recorder. Hearing how the crew deals with the lightning strike, and then hearing them laugh their way into orbit, is priceless. 

The 3-DVD Apollo 12 set was one of of interesting achievements. I think we ended up making very watchable EVAs after the television was burned out. Using photos, checklists and graphics, both EVAs are included in full, as are all of the TV transmissions and onboard film. (And right now for a limited time it is priced at 30% off - $34.99)

Apollo 12 3-DVD Set

 

Thursday is a pretty good day for footage, also...

Here's the sampling of Soviet footage I spoke about Monday. When I was doing the Mercury set I wanted to include some Soviet footage (and I've also been collecting what I need for the Apollo-Soyuz DVD), and I found some of this under the CIA record group at the National Archives. I used some of it on Mercury, some of it I didn't use on anything yet. There's lots more, too.

I extended our current offers through Friday, November 9... (special pricing and free shipping).

 

Because Monday always deserves some great footage...

I was planning on showing some Soviet footage that was gathered for our Mercury set today. I found it at the National Archives under the CIA record group, and didn't use all of it for Mercury, so I was going to show it, but it has taken too long to encode (the computers are still crunching it down). I'll hold on to it for later in the week, or maybe next Monday.

In the meantime, here's a great clip from Apollo 13, Camera E-72, in HD. I have always loved the colors in this particular clip. Some of the pad cameras were 16mm film, some 35mm, and some even 70mm. I've always wanted to see if the 70mm cameras could be transferred, but I understand they are "military perf" and have never been able to find the time to see if it would be possible. I'm not sure which cameras they were and if it would be worth the effort. Perhaps something for the future.

By the way, we have an entire collection of HD Saturn V clips available on hard drive. The page describes the shots included. They are also available at a great price as an add-on to the Apollo Onboards in HD. You can see them both together in one package here.

Now extended through November 8th, we also have special pricing on some of our most popular sets, Saturn V, Liftoff, Apollo 1, Apollo 13, Apollo 16, X-15, First Moonwalk (the restored Apollo 11 EVA), as well as a special price on the I Love Rockets Combo.

Our free shipping offer is in effect (use the discount code "FREE" in the US, "INTERNATIONAL" outside the US), and we're offering 15% off orders over $100. All now through Tuesday, November 6, 2012.