
Who is responsible for capturing the iconic photo of the first man on the Moon?C. Stuart Hardwick:
If you're referring to this image:
This shot is a frame from the slow-scan, low-resolution TV camera that was mounted in the Modularized Equipment Stowage Assembly (MESA). The MESA unfolded from a small equipment bay to the right of the ladder (as viewed from above the Lunar Module) when Neil Armstrong triggered the release before descending to the lunar surface.
The image above displays the MESA in its deployed position, causing the camera to appear almost upside down, with its pistol grip protruding at the top center of the frame and its lens pointing away from the subject. Here’s a closer view of the camera from the opposite side:
By modern standards, this camera wasn’t exactly impressive, but it was a technological marvel for its time, about twelve times smaller than the commercial TV cameras then in use. Due to its non-standard format and the necessity of broadcasting the moon landing footage worldwide in various formats, all the images you've seen from this camera were actually recorded secondhand, from high-intensity TV monitors provided by NASA. The whole setup was clumsy and costly, but it was the only feasible method at the time.
If this is the image you're referring to (or any of the similar ones):
Here we see Buzz Aldrin (the second astronaut to leave the Lunar Module), captured by Neil Armstrong (the first) using a 70mm Hasselblad medium-format camera. To this day, it remains one of the best cameras ever produced, equipped with a specially designed magazine containing fine-grain Kodachrome film on an ultra-thin mylar base. This allowed the magazine to hold twice as much film as a standard commercial stock.
These cameras were modified to be worn on the astronaut's chest:
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