Designer Helen Sham Has Created A Fully-Functional Hasselblad 503CX Camera Entirely From LEGO

A pair of creative hands can certainly build wonderful things out of a bunch of LEGO bricks. For starters, we’ve seen a guitar, a life-sized cherry blossom tree, and even a full-size Volkswagen camper van. Now, Taiwanese photographer and designer Helen Sham has created a LEGO camera based on the Hasselblad 503CX. Take note, it is 100% functional.

Inspiration behind Her Creation

Being a photographer herself, Sham revealed that the film camera model has always been one of her favorites. She also loved the manual mechanisms that came with it. The Hasselblad 503CX hit the market in the late ’80s. Nonetheless, its iconic design takes reference from the classic 500 Series which dates back to 1957.

LEGO Camera with Focus Hood Up Left Perspective — Helen Sham

LEGO Camera with Focus Hood Up Right Perspective — Helen Sham

LEGO Camera with Focus Hood Up Back — Helen Sham

A LEGO Camera that Works Just Like the Real Thing

From the outside, Sham’s camera replica looks just like the real thing. Likewise, its interior mechanism stays true to the original model as well. It features a waist-level viewfinder through which you can frame a scene. This is because of the glass piece that Sham has added to the lens.

LEGO Hasselblad 503CX Focusing Screen Showing Subject — Helen Sham

LEGO Hasselblad 503CX Focusing Screen — Helen Sham

LEGO Hasselblad 503CX Internal Mechanism — Helen Sham

LEGO Hasselblad 503CX Internal Mechanism 3 — Helen Sham

LEGO Hasselblad 503CX Internal Mechanism 2 — Helen Sham

Similarly, she incorporated a spring into the shutter button to create a more realistic feel when shooting with the camera. The camera also includes a film winder and a number display for the film counter. So, yes, you can actually load a real film into it and keep track of your remaining film. Overall, she used 1,120 LEGO bricks and spent only two hours building her masterpiece.

LEGO Hasselblad 503CX Winding Crank — Helen Sham

LEGO Hasselblad 503CX Film Winding Crank — Helen Sham

LEGO Hasselblad 503CX Film Speed and Type Indicator — Helen Sham

LEGO Hasselblad 503CX Magazine Catch — Helen Sham

The photographer’s LEGO Hasselblad actually made it to LEGO Ideas, a page for LEGO master builders to showcase their works. Moreover, it’s a platform for them to raise awareness for their concepts and even qualify as potential LEGO set ideas. If their ideas garner 10,000 supporters, experts from the brand will then review their works for approval. If all goes well, the concept goes into production and makes its way to store shelves.

Here’s a video showing Sham assembling her LEGO Hasselblad 503CX

To date, Sham’s LEGO camera has only reached 1,902 supporters. Sadly, it failed to meet the required number of supporters to qualify for the next step. Nonetheless, Sham still creates amazing LEGO projects, which you can find here via her Facebook page.