Billions of people have seen and been influenced by movies in the short history of this industry.
But at heart, I am more than a cinematographer.
Cinematography is infinite in its possibilities... Much more so than music or language.
Contrast is what makes photography interesting.
Dad, wherever you are, you are gone but you will never be forgotten.
Every cinematographer I worked with had his own way of solving problems.
Every once in a while, when the audience is expecting to see one thing, you have to show them something else.
I can still recall the thrill of shooting my first film.
I don't think of myself as a director or writer. I think of myself as a filmmaker.
I hope I'm still shooting when I'm 80.
I realize that every picture isn't a work of art.
I saw Tequila Sunrise as a romantic picture with complex, bigger than life characters.
I suppose I would still be a communicator, maybe a musician.
I want to tell a story and shape it all the way through to the end.
I was very happy sitting alone at a dining room table, writing a script.
In aptitude tests, I scored highest in music.
Manipulating shadows and tonality is like writing music or a poem.
It's important to know that if you are dealing with shadows.
You are always a student, never a master. You have to keep moving forward.
My first semester, I got a D in creative writing.
It was 100 feet of 16 mm black-and-white film of a car coming to a stop sign, and driving off. I had to decide how to frame and light it. It was magic. There was a sense of mystery.
It took a while for me to grasp that my colleagues believe I have made an impact on the history of cinema.
Photography is a very important part of my life.
