20 Greatest Cinematographers
(Emmanuel Lubezki has shot films for a slew of legends (Mike Nichols, Tim Burton, Michael Mann, Terrence Malick, Martin Scorsese, the Coen Brothers)
We can forgive a lot to a film if it looks great and when a film looks especially great, we can even forget to follow the story and concentrate on cinematography. When done right, it’s a breath-taking experience.
Anthony Dod Mantle - Slumdog Millionaire (for which he won the Oscar), Rush (which he should have been nominated), Trance, Dredd, Heart of the Sea, Antichrist and 127 Hours - the visuals were stunning
Another legend: Conrad L. Hall has shot eg. American Beauty (amazing work!), Road to Perdition, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and many more. He has been nominated for the Oscar 10 times and he won three of them.
Jeff Cronenweth - Fincher and Cronenweth as the couple here presented us with Se7en and The Game, Fight Club, The Social Network and The Girl With a Dragon Tattoo, Gone Girl.
Wally Pfister - He’s Nolan’s trusted guy. Inception, The Prestige, all batmans Nolan made and even Memento. His directorial debut Transcendence is on quite many “most waited of 2014″ lists.
Darius Khondji - a genius who can make even films like Wimbledon look cool, as well Se7en, Evita, Panic Room, Midnight in Paris and Amour, Magic in the Moonlight
Roger Deakins - The greatest cinematographer alive. 11 Oscar nominations, no win. Skyfall, True Grit, Revolutionary Road, Doubt, Prisoners, The Assassination of Jesse James, The Village, Beautiful Mind, Fargo, Unbroken
Sven Nykvist - One of Ingmar Bergman’s favourite, collaborated with other cinematic greats Roman Polanski and Andrei Tarkovsky.
Emmanuel Lubezki - Ali, Children Of Men, The Tree Of Life - ne of the most beautifully shot films ever made.
Freddie Young - Britain’s most influential directors of photography - Lawrence Of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago and Ryan’s Daughter still look stunning to this day.
Gregg Toland - made an indelible mark on the cinematic landscape - five Oscar nominaions over a period of just seven years. Wuthering Heights, Citizen Kane
David Lynch collaborators imclude Peter Deming for MULHOLLAND DRIVE, Lost Highway (not to mention Evil Dead 2!), Frederick Elmes for Eraserhead, Blue Velvet and Wild At Heart, Freddie Francis for The Elephant Man and The Straight Story
Slawomir Idziak - intimate European films, most notably those of director Krzysztof Kieślowski, Black Hawk Down, Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix and Gattaca. Greatest Achievement: Three Colours: Blue, a sensory masterpiece.
Janusz Kaminski - Spielberg’s cinematographer of choice - 13 films together - two Oscars for Schindler’s List and Saving Private Ryan.
Hal Mohr - A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Phantom Of The Opera were moody and absorbing. Greatest Achievement:The Jazz Singer, the first ever talkie.
Sacha Vierny - 10 films with director Alain Resnais, Peter Greenaway referred to Vierny as his “most important collaborator”. Greatest Achievement: Belle De Jour
Gordon Willis - he used His love for rich blacks and dimly-lit interior shots on The Godfather trilogy.
Wally Pfister - has worked with Nolan on all of his films, so that’s his Batman trilogy, plus Memento, The Prestige and Inception.
Vilmos Zsigmond - A lover of vivid colour and natural light, most notable work - The Long Goodbye and Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, The Black Dahlia
Roger Deakins - responsible for many of the Coen Brothers’ finest films - The Man Who Wasn’t There, O Brother, Where Art Thou? and Skyfall, one of the best-looking Bond films ever made
Ellen Kuras - collaborator of Spike Lee (and one of the few established female cinematographers) - He Got Game, Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind
Eduardo Serra - Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Parts 1 and 2, Unbreakable, Blood Diamond and The Wings Of The Dove and Girl With A Pearl Earring
chosen materials from http://fairytalepictures.wordpress.com/2014/03/16/the-best-of-the-best-cinematographers/