Customer Reviews

Apollo 15: Man Must Explore (Extended Collector's Edition)

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This review is partly in response to a previous reviewer who criticized the television/video quality of the EVA material. But first, I will reiterate what others have said and highly recommend this set, as it chronicles one the most exciting lunar missions (and one of NASA's most exciting missions overall), a mission that is often forgotten by the general public in the shadow of Apollo 11 and 13. If you're a space buff and want to "re-live" these historic lunar missions in as much detail as possible, the Spacecraft Films sets are the only way to go. It's not material the general public will necessarily enjoy, since it is mostly presented raw and unedited. But for the general public, there are many greats DVDs to choose from (Nova's "To the Moon," "For All Mankind," etc.) that cover the Apollo program highlights and history.

Now regarding the video quality...one should note that Spacecraft Films did put a disclaimer on their website that some of the source material in this set was not in the greatest condition. One could be forgiven for not noticing that disclaimer since it does not appear to be repeated here on Amazon. We should remember that archival of videotape was not NASA's top priority in 1971, since nobody ever figured people would be wanting to watch complete lunar EVAs 30+ years later. (Funnily enough, they probably figured we'd have a fully functional moon base or would be stepping foot on Mars by now. But I digress.) In some instances, one color of the videotape would drop out from time to time. In some instances, they were forced to use kinescope footage whenever the videotape was in too poor condition (Note: kinescope is essentially a film taken of a television screen...at one point before video became the norm, it was the only way to archive "live" broadcasts...most surviving television footage from the 50s and 60s is kinescope). Whatever the case, they used the best source material possible.

As for the way the footage was shot, keep in mind that this was all done live "on the fly" and was never intended to be a slickly produced video of the lunar activities. With the television camera mounted on the rover, it was controlled from the Earth in order to allow mission control (and the general public) to follow the Scott's and Irwin's activities. Hours and hours of EVAs are bound to have their moments of poor lighting (it was the moon, after all), occaisonal poor framing, quick zooms, etc. as they camera operator tried to keep up with the astronauts. These weren't Hollywood directors, but instead were NASA employees and astronauts trying to document their activities as best as they were trained to do. In comparison to Apollo 11, having a color camera that traveled with the astronauts and could be controlled from Earth was a "giant leap" forward in how the missions were seen back home.

The reason for shooting television/video instead of film is obvious when you think about it. Film must be returned to Earth and processed before you can view it. And a film camera can't be remotely operated with any ease, since the remote operator cannot see what results he is getting and doesn't have a viewfinder. Apollo 16 astronauts DID carry a 16mm film camera with them on their EVAs, but only shot short segments in order to conserve film. They still used television for the majority of the EVA stops, because it allowed viewers back home the chance to watch the proceedings live.

When one considers the available technology in 1971, it's just plain amazing that images this great could be broadcast live from the moon's surface. Any defects or flaws are understandable and don't really diminish from the great accomplishments of the Apollo 15 mission.

I've always said that there are people who get what we're doing, and people who don't. I'm writing this explanation for those who might misunderstand some of the reviews, most especially "data dump" below.

First of all, there is no video feed one can record "straight from" in 1971. The material on these sets is scattered among various centers in various conditions of preservation. The work that goes into bringing it all together, including new transfers of all of the film material (which you should compare to the previous grainy transfers of the filmed material), is expensive, time consuming and difficult. The 6 DVDs are packed with the video and audio material collected, including all of the TV and motion picture film from the mission, as well as all the stills from the surface, plus training, preparation, launch, recovery, a 3D representation of the landing site showing the traverses, and more.

Apollo 15 had a 16mm camera taken on the surface on the LRV. It jammed repeatedly. There is very little 16mm film footage from the surface on Apollo 15. (Nor is there 16mm footage of the trans-Earth EVA, it jammed too). ALL of the 16mm film shot on Apollo 15 is included on the set. Apollo 16 had a 16mm camera which took nearly all of the film you've seen from the LRV and it was the only time footage was taken of the LRV driving on the moon. Apollo 17 did not carry a 16mm camera out on the surface during their EVAs. If one is going to criticize, one should at least make half an effort at some research to back up their claims.

The only motion picture film from the CM in lunar orbit is included. (very little).

Our sets were designed to present this information without a filter, so that it can be used by serious researchers and those with a serious interest in the record of the U.S. space program. For this reason, on purpose, the material is left in the original form. We do perform noise reduction and color correction on the TV and make new digital transfers of the film. But the material on this mission is from 1971. This was a time when just to change a channel you would get up, clunk the thing over a few channels, adjust your rabbit ears and try and get the best possible picture. And the TV was from a quarter of a million miles away, analog, with low signal strength.

In actuality, how lucky we truly are to have any chronicle of these voyages of exploration. In contrast to the complaints about the picture quality of the time, I find the footage extraordinary.

This is an essential tool for every Apollo researcher. The complete downlink series has the entire TV footage , plus training and a few stills. You can appreciate every detail of the EVA's and the Rover routs. The deployment of the ASLEP, The troubles with the drill, and the famous episode of the Feather and the Hammer. The chapter sections are chronologically arranged, and subchapters allow you to review film magazine pictures, assembled moon landscape panoramas, and the separate 16 mm films. You get the pre-flight tests, suit-ups, multi angle launch views of the Saturn V rocket, mid flight downlinks, news conferences, splashdown recovery and even CM lunar survey film footage.
Spacecraft films have made a wonderful job. The set contain every footage of the mission, no the mix of several Apollo mission footage, generally trying to represent one entire flight. You have to acknowledge that in some part there is not Audio with out documental music, The voice are the original.
You will have over 12 hours of the Entire Apollo 15 Mission

Wow! The landing at Hadley was really the most spectacularly beautiful site in all the Apollo missions. This set shows all available footage (both video and 16mm) of the Apollo 15 landing and in full colour as well!

OK people who are interested enough in Apollo to sit through the complete downlink series may be few and far between, however, in all cases I have found myself compelled to watch. These missions really were the greatest moment in human history.

Spacecraftfilms have made these sets with so much passionate love about what's in them, that you'll be hard pressed to fault them. EVERYTHING is there. No curtailed mix of several Apollo mission footage generally trying to represent one landing, no cheesy music, no voice overs telling us what we can plainly see on the screen.

The chapter sections are chronoligically arranged, and subchapters allow you to review film magazine pictures, assembled moon landscape panoramas, and the seperate 16mm films. Not only the moon EVAs are there. You get the pre-flight tests, suit-ups, multi angle launch views of the Saturn V rocket, mid flight downlinks, news conferences, splashdown recovery and even CM lunar survey film footage.

Prepare a weekend of couch potatoe asorbtion with this (and the other Apollo Downlink sets). You will not be disspointed. Furthermore, the educational value of these sets cannot be overstated. WELL worth the moeny hands down.

As a fairly new fan of the Apollo series, and by no means a scientific expert, I was concerned that a boxset on Apollo 15 might be a bit overwhelming. Thanks to the excellent production and organization of this Spacecraft Films set, my fears were unfounded.
As other viewers have stated, everything regarding the mission is here. But even if you want to skip through a lot of it (like some of the prelaunch meetings), you won't be disappointed. You don't get the feeling that you're witnessing a greatest hits or highlight film of a great moon visit, but almost the whole thing.
I think Spacecraft has done a remarkable job with this series giving us a comprehensive library of an incredible project in American history. The more I watch, the more I can't wait to see another mission out on DVD. Why just read about it and look at stills, when you can actually relive it?
If you're a parent or teacher, it can be an incredible teaching device. But if you just appreciate knowledge, it's an amazing revelation.

An incredible six DVD set encompassing the first extended manned flight to the moon in July, 1971. Mark Gray's Spacecraft Films has realized a dream for many Apollo Freaks that have wanted the best quality footage and video availiable of America's early space missions. Previously released bootleg videos of the Apollo moonwalks were copied from grainy film kinescopes, not the master videotapes. For this new set, Spacecraft Films made sure that nearly all of the lunar EVA video had been digitally enhanced and remastered from the master two-inch videotape reels that were stored at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. This results in that "live as it happened" look that only original master videotape can give you. Bravo, Spacecraft Films!

This is a fantastic and historically wonderful DVD of the famous Apollo 15 moon mission. It is literally ALL here -- everything the hardcore Apollo enthusiast would want. It is a labor of love and well worth owning.

I just wanted to add for the previous reviewer from Mexico: Scott and Irwin did deploy the American flag at the end of EVA 2 (the one that went to the flank of Hadley Delta and on which the famous Genesis Rock was found). On their return to the LM, they deployed the flag. However, Irwins camera had malfunctioned and Scott's camera was black and white only. So Scott decided that rather than have B/W photos of the red, white and blue, they would wait until the next day and have their color camera loaded.

So the famous color photos you have of Scott and then Irwin standing at the deployed flag were actually taken by the astronauts on the next day, at the beginning of EVA3. That is why the positioning of the Rover camera looks different -- because the flag deploy was on day two and the color photos of the astronauts with the flag was on day three.

Enjoy these marvelous DVDs of one of the Great Explorations of all time - Apollo 15

Truly fabulous. This is history at it's best and it's all here for the veiwing. Nothing like these sets (however they ARE for the "hardcore" fans). Along with these downlink DVDs the book "Exploring the Moon" by David Harland is as detailed (and more so because not everything was filmed)and is a great companion to these DVDs

Definitely, this set of 6 DVDs is for true Apollo hardcore fans. Almost every TV transmission is included, as well as all the photographic magazines used by the astronauts on the surface of the moon. Apollo 15 was the only lunar mission on which a site observation was made (by CDR Scott) on the surface of the moon by opening the docking hatch and standing on the ascent engine cover, so the pictures and audio are included too. The pre-flight videos are quite interesting, since they show some of the procedures performed to fine-tune the LM before the flight. One of them shows the reception of the LMÂ's descent stage at the Cape, with technicians unboxing and unzipping the module. The LRV (Rover) attaching procedure to the LM is also fully covered.
One of the things that amazed me is that on EVA2, on the "Back to LM" portion, both astronauts deploy the US flag while the Rover camera is watching at them. I have had for
years two pictures of LMP Jim Irwin standing at one side of the Rover while saluting to both Scott and the flag. In this pictures is obvious that the Rover remote-controlled camera from Houston is watching at the photographer, not at the subject as it happens on EVA2. After reviewing once and again the video and pictures AS15-92-12444 to AS15-92-12447 on magazine OO/92, I said to myself that, finally, I had found an obvious error and that every single Apollo flight was a hoax. But then, reviewing EVA3 and magazine TT/88 on chapter "Farewell to Hadley" I discovered that, indeed, CDR Scott takes the picture of LMP Irwin while the Rover camera is pointing at him. Picture is AS15-88-11865.
A weird thing I discovered and that should be explained is that on "Farewell to Hadley" the video shows both Scott and Irwin working on the Rover at one side of the LM; at 40:25 mins the Rover camera fails, and without audio interruption it works again some 200 m away from the LM at 41:20 mins on its final spot. So that means Scott drove the Rover off some 200 m, parked it and re-arranged the camera in just 55 seconds!!!
Another strange thing is that the sixth DVD shows the last transmission from the Rover, on 4th August 1971, more than 24 hours after they took off from the surface, but nothing is shown between the LM take off and this last show. Perhaps a little green man with horn-shaped nose and gloves started to dismantle the LM...
Anyway, this set of videos is worth every dollar I paid for and truly an outstanding document of one of the mankind's greatest adventures.

This is a must-have DVD. I was there standing next to the VAB building when the Saturn V with Apollo 15 took off. I remember the sound reaching us just as the first stage cleared the tower. The shock waves caused one's skin to vibrate, and I remember having to yell at a friend standing next to me to be heard over the tremendous noise of the rocket motors almost 3 miles away. We were all caught up in the euphoria and yelling "go, go, go " as the giant rocket rose with a majesty into the sky balanced on a flame longer than a football field. I can't wait to get my copy.