What is cinematography/what does a cinematographer do?
Cinematography is the process of capturing imagery for films (motion picture photography). The overall outcome for the images captured is for them to be both visually beautiful and powerfully moving in terms of narrative. The cinematographer works closely with the director to achieve the best possible results. They are also generally the person ranked second highest after the director in film crews.
Why is a cinematographer an important part of a film crew?
As cinematographers are ranked very highly in film crews, it is obvious they play a very important role in a film crew. Cinematographers are mainly responsible for the way a film looks as they focus on lighting and camera lenses, whilst the director decides on camera angles etc. Cinematographers have the capability to effect the audiences emotions, even by making the smallest changes and adjustments to a scene (e.g. manipulating lighting or colours).
The cinematographer is sometimes known as the Director of Photography (or DP). Some examples of famous and talented DP’s are as follows:
- Emmanuel Lubezki – cinematographer for Gravity (2013)
- Roger Deakins – cinematographer for The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
- László Kovács – cinematographer for Ghostbusters (1984)
- Harris Savides – cinematographer for American Gangster (2007)
Being a cinematographer is a challenging career, as they have a lot of responsibility when it comes to creating a visually pleasing piece of work. If successful enough, cinematographers can go on to win Academy Awards for “Best Cinematography”.
Below- Emmanuel Lubezki winning the award for “Best Cinematography” for the 2013 film Gravity.
References
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