Remastered Images Celebrate Nasa’s Iconic Apollo Missions From 50 Years Ago

Restored Photos of NASA Apollo Missions

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Fifty years after humans last stepped on the Moon, imaging specialist Andy Saunders is celebrating the Apollo missions by enhancing original photos from the beloved NASA program. In his book, Apollo Remastered: The Ultimate Photographic Record, Saunders shares hundreds of newly restored and never before seen images from the NASA archive.

Apollo astronauts diligently documented their missions on Hasselblad flight film, but for many years, those images were kept in a vault at the Johnson Space Center. Luckily, in the past few years, NASA has been making high-resolution scans of these images and releasing them to the public. This is where Saunders comes in.

After scouring the archives, Saunders works to restore the images. This process can take anywhere from a few hours to a few days depending on the state of the original scan. At times, that can mean reducing the noise in the photo, at others it means lifting the veil of darkness on an underexposed photo to show what lies beneath. Saunders is careful to point out that there is no AI used in the process and he takes pride in the work that goes into remastering these important images.

“As these are historically significant images, it's vital to sympathetically remaster them and maintain authenticity, and to represent what the astronauts who were there witnessed,” he tells My Modern Met. “A huge amount of research went into this, particularly with regard to color, and several of the Apollo astronauts have contributed to ensure that what I've produced is an accurate representation of what it's actually like to make the incredible journey from the Earth to the Moon.”

It took Saunders about three years to work his way through the images. Apollo Remastered is a culmination of that work and an opportunity for Saunders to share these important pieces of space history with a wider audience. “I hope people will view them and be inspired to learn more about early spaceflight as well as to look forward to our return to the Moon and beyond in the not-too-distant future.”

Image specialist Andy Saunders spent years working on photos from NASA's Apollo missions.

Restored Photos of NASA Apollo MissionsRestored Photos of NASA Apollo MissionsRestored Photos of NASA Apollo Missions

His work can take hours or days depending on the adjustments he needs to make to the photos.

Apollo Remastered by Andy SaundersApollo Remastered by Andy Saunders

 

Apollo Remastered by Andy Saunders

Saunders has consulted with several Apollo astronauts to ensure his work is accurate.

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The results are all included in his new book, Apollo Remastered: The Ultimate Photographic Record.

Restored Photos of NASA Apollo MissionsRestored Photos of NASA Apollo MissionsRestored Photos of NASA Apollo MissionsRestored Photos of NASA Apollo Missions

“I hope people will view them and be inspired to learn more about early spaceflight as well as to look forward to our return to the Moon and beyond in the not-too-distant future.”

Restored Photos of NASA Apollo MissionsRestored Photos of NASA Apollo MissionsAndy Saunders: Website | Facebook | Instagram

All images via NASA / JSC / ASU / Andy Saunders. My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Andy Saunders.

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Jessica Stewart

Jessica Stewart is a Contributing Writer and Digital Media Specialist for My Modern Met, as well as a curator and art historian. Since 2020, she is also one of the co-hosts of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. She earned her MA in Renaissance Studies from University College London and now lives in Rome, Italy. She cultivated expertise in street art which led to the purchase of her photographic archive by the Treccani Italian Encyclopedia in 2014. When she’s not spending time with her three dogs, she also manages the studio of a successful street artist. In 2013, she authored the book 'Street Art Stories Roma' and most recently contributed to 'Crossroads: A Glimpse Into the Life of Alice Pasquini'. You can follow her adventures online at @romephotoblog.
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