Cinematographer

We could go on for a thousand words about the following five pictures. But better to simply let the cinematographers who shot them explain the origins and execution of a few of our favorite film images from the year. "The Ides of March" The scene: Ryan Gosling's press secretary stands backstage, lost in thought following a confrontation with his boss. Cinematographer: Phedon Papamichael Birth of the shot: "The morning of rehearsal, George [Clooney]

Roger Deakins won the 27th American Society of Cinematographers Award for outstanding achievement in feature film for "Skyfall" on Sunday evening. Deakins previously won the ASC Award 18 years ago for "The Shawshank Redemption" and six years ago for "No Country for Old Men. " The cinematographer, who earned his 10th Academy Award nomination for "Skyfall," has never won an Oscar. Perhaps the ASC win will boost his chances to finally win the elusive Academy Award. OSCARS 2013: Full coverage Earlier Sunday, "Skyfall" won the BAFTA for best British film.

Edward Klosinski, 65, a Polish cinematographer best known for his work with Oscar-winning director Andrzej Wajda, died Jan. 5 of complications from lung cancer at his home in Milanowek, Poland. Klosinski worked on about 70 films and was a favorite cinematographer of Wajda. Their work together included "Man of Iron," which chronicled the development of the Solidarity trade union movement in Poland. The film won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 1981. Klosinski once said a "good movie is more important than beautiful cinematography" -- underlining his belief that his work should serve a film's atmosphere rather than show off his talents.

"Beasts of the Southern Wild" stars a 6-year-old Quvenzhané Wallis as Hushpuppy and is set near New Orleans, in a fictional island region in constant danger of being washed away. The denizens' ingenuity comes as a constant surprise to viewers, who can almost feel the humidity and smell the swamp. But how did a crew of feature-film novices with a budget of just $1.5 million so persuasively create this idiosyncratic world? "The film jelled really well with people who were amateurs or who didn't have experience," says first-time feature director and co-writer Benh Zeitlin.

Harris Savides, who was widely considered one of the most influential contemporary cinematographers, earning acclaim for his canny visual sensibility on such films as "Zodiac" and "Milk," died Wednesday. He was 55. The Skouras Agency confirmed the New York-based cinematographer's death but released no other details. "If you were looking for a cinematographer with both sizzle and substance, you couldn't find a more adept visual stylist than Harris Savides," Patrick Goldstein wrote in The Times in 2007.

William A. "Bill" Fraker, a cinematographer who was nominated for six Academy Awards including for "Looking for Mr. Goodbar," "Heaven Can Wait" and "1941," died Monday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He was 86 and had cancer. Fraker, a larger-than-life figure, was one of America's most respected cinematographers, known as much for the enduring images he crafted on classic movies like "Rosemary's Baby" and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" as for his efforts to mentor young camera operators.

Richard Moore, a cinematographer and co-founder of Panavision, has died. He was 83. Moore's Aug. 16 death at his home in Palm Springs was age-related, said his son, Stephen V. Moore. His cinematography credits include "Winning" in 1969, "Myra Breckinridge" and "Sometimes a Great Notion" in 1970, "The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean" in 1972 and "Annie" in 1982. Moore shared a 1959 scientific and engineering award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and received the President's Award from the American Society of Cinematographers in 2004.

Early in his career as one of Hollywood's top cinematographers, Bruce Surtees became known for his artful use of low-level, moody lighting in films such as Don Siegel's "The Beguiled" and "Dirty Harry" and Bob Fosse's "Lenny. " Surtees, 74, who received an Oscar nomination for his work on "Lenny" and was closely associated with Clint Eastwood on many of his films, died Feb. 23 in Carmel, Calif., of complications of diabetes, said his wife, Carol. FOR THE RECORD: Bruce Surtees: In the March 2 LATExtra section, a photo accompanying the obituary of cinematographer Bruce Surtees was described by the source, Getty Images, as showing him with Clint Eastwood during filming of "High Plains Drifter.

The encampment around City Hall known as Occupy L.A. has drawn the interest of photographers and journalists from around the world, but few arrive with quite the same resume as that of Haskell Wexler. The two-time Oscar-winning cinematographer has made several visits to the protest site, using a small hand-held digital video camera to document what he finds there. Now 89, Wexler has begun posting short documentary vignettes online about the people camped out in downtown Los Angeles.

This year's Oscar nominees for cinematography present a particularly varied cross-section of contemporary filmmaking at a time when the very infrastructure of how movies are made and seen is in transition. Consider: 35-millimeter film prints are being phased out in favor of digital projection. Consumer still cameras can be used to shoot high-definition digital video. Video on demand is becoming a popular viewing option. Even the venerable Eastman Kodak, which produces the film stock on which many movies are made, recently filed for bankruptcy protection.

The American Society of Cinematographers announced Friday morning that Dean Semler, Rodney Charters, Robby Muller and Curtis Clark will be honored during the 27th annual ASC Outstanding Achievement Awards on Feb. 10 at the Hollywood & Highland Grand Ballroom. Semler, who has made nearly 70 features and won an Oscar for the 1990 film "Dances With Wolves," will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. Charters, who began his career on documentaries and has worked on such TV series as "24," "Nash Bridges" and now "Nashville," is set to receive the Career Achievement in Television honor.

Harris Savides, who was widely considered one of the most influential contemporary cinematographers, earning acclaim for his canny visual sensibility on such films as "Zodiac" and "Milk," died Wednesday. He was 55. The Skouras Agency confirmed the New York-based cinematographer's death but released no other details. "If you were looking for a cinematographer with both sizzle and substance, you couldn't find a more adept visual stylist than Harris Savides," Patrick Goldstein wrote in The Times in 2007.

Build-a-Bear Workshop was introducing a line of stuffed animals called smallfrys and wanted to reach moms through Facebook. One video used in the online promotion showed a woman pulling up to a fast-food window. Her young daughter requests "a smallfry. " When her mom suggests a fruit cup or celery sticks, the daughter says, "Mom, order me a curly-haired bunny in a purple sequined bathing suit. " The 45-second smallfrys spot came not from a traditional advertising agency but from Poptent Inc., a "crowdsourced" video production studio that has built a global community of 50,000 writers, directors, cinematographers and animators to create commercials for Build-a-Bear, American Airlines, Dell, Intel, Jaguar, General Mills and others.

Early in his career as one of Hollywood's top cinematographers, Bruce Surtees became known for his artful use of low-level, moody lighting in films such as Don Siegel's "The Beguiled" and "Dirty Harry" and Bob Fosse's "Lenny. " Surtees, 74, who received an Oscar nomination for his work on "Lenny" and was closely associated with Clint Eastwood on many of his films, died Feb. 23 in Carmel, Calif., of complications of diabetes, said his wife, Carol. FOR THE RECORD: Bruce Surtees: In the March 2 LATExtra section, a photo accompanying the obituary of cinematographer Bruce Surtees was described by the source, Getty Images, as showing him with Clint Eastwood during filming of "High Plains Drifter.

Michael Davis Bassist for rock band MC5 Michael Davis, 68, the bassist of influential late 1960s rock band MC5, died Friday of liver failure at Enloe Medical Center in Chico, Calif., said his wife, Angela Davis. The Motor City Five, later known as MC5, rose to prominence in 1964, making waves with incendiary anti-establishment lyrics and a blistering early punk sound, starting with their first album "Kick Out the Jams," released in 1969. Known for its live performances, the band played outside the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago before rioting ended the concert.

This year's Oscar nominees for cinematography present a particularly varied cross-section of contemporary filmmaking at a time when the very infrastructure of how movies are made and seen is in transition. Consider: 35-millimeter film prints are being phased out in favor of digital projection. Consumer still cameras can be used to shoot high-definition digital video. Video on demand is becoming a popular viewing option. Even the venerable Eastman Kodak, which produces the film stock on which many movies are made, recently filed for bankruptcy protection.

How I Made It: An article in Sunday's Business section about giant-screen filmmaker Greg MacGillivray said his early efforts with Jim Freeman included "Sentinels of Silence." Freeman was a cinematographer on "Sentinels," but the film was produced by Manuel Arango and directed by Robert Amram.

I love action films, but the trivialization of life is so intense it has to tell us something about those who make and sell them and, worst of all, about those among us who crave them. HASKELL WEXLER Santa Monica Wexler is a noted cinematographer.

Mike deGruy Award-winning nature cinematographer Mike deGruy, 60, an award-winning marine scientist and nature cinematographer best known for documentaries featuring underwater footage that brought viewers up close to sea creatures, plants and geographical features, died Saturday in a helicopter crash in eastern Australia, National Geographic said. Australian television writer-producer Andrew Wight, 52, also died when the helicopter he was piloting crashed soon after takeoff from an airstrip near Nowra, 97 miles north of Sydney.

We could go on for a thousand words about the following five pictures. But better to simply let the cinematographers who shot them explain the origins and execution of a few of our favorite film images from the year. "The Ides of March" The scene: Ryan Gosling's press secretary stands backstage, lost in thought following a confrontation with his boss. Cinematographer: Phedon Papamichael Birth of the shot: "The morning of rehearsal, George [Clooney]