Academy Award for Best Cinematography — Top 20 Winners

When the Sam Mendes directed Road to Perdition was nominated for six Oscars at the 2003 ceremony, cinematographer Conrad L. Hall received his 10th nomination for Best Achievement in Cinematography. Unfortunately, Conrad L. Hall passed away less than three months before the annual awards ceremony. The prestigious Oscar was awarded to him posthumously, becoming his third win in the category and capping off a career that began all the way back in the 1950s.

With Kevin Costner both directing and starring in the frontier epic Dances With Wolves, he needed someone he could trust and rely upon behind the camera, and that person was Dean Semler. Much of the beauty in Dances With Wolves comes from the stunning scenery where all of the action takes place. Dances With Wolves was a technically complex shoot with hundreds of extras, horses, and SPFX technicians requiring precise production coordination.

It is impossible to overstate the importance of Bonnie and Clyde to the history of cinema. The film was groundbreaking and envelope pushing in more ways than one. Inspired by the French New Wave, Bonnie and Clyde was instrumental in the changing style of filmmaking as the 60s progressed into the 70s. And Burnett Guffey’s cinematography was a key part of that pivotal transition, perhaps most notably in the film’s envelope-pushing climax which showcased graphic violence in crystal-clear slow motion. One of the early examples of how to use slow motion to create iconic moments.

Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu quickly followed up his hit Birdman with a second Oscar darling the very next year; an impressive back-to-back showing. The revenant again features show-stopping cinematography from Emmanuel Lubezki. What makes the already incredible cinematography even more impressive are the conditions under which the film was made: in freezing temperatures, out in the wilderness, and with almost entirely natural light. Natural light is one of many different lighting sources and techniques used by cinematographers and this film is a high watermark for the style.

The Hustler is the first black and white film on our list, and was awarded the Best Achievement in Cinematography Oscar back when the category was still divided into black and white and color sub-categories. Eugen Schufftan’s moody lighting and use of chiaroscuro lighting evokes a Film Noir mood without committing the film fully to the noir genre’s more traditional stylings. The Hustler’s excellent lighting does wonders to make the confined locations of the film feel dynamic and exciting.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s There Will Be Blood is a cinematographer’s dream. It’s an incredibly visual film, and cinematographer Robert Elswit captures and delivers Anderson’s vision perfectly. The film is full of memorable visuals and sequences from start to finish.

The vastness of the desert is wonderfully captured, and sequences such as the burning of the oil derrick are truly awe inspiring.

Ingmar Bergman’s semi-autobiographical Fanny and Alexander stands tall as one of the best pieces from the master director’s filmography. Fanny and Alexander was initially planned and produced as a television mini-series which was divided into five parts and clocked in at over five hours in length. A film version was edited out of the mini-series which came in at a still lengthy, but more manageable three hour and eight minute runtime. This film version is what was honored at the academy awards and earned cinematographer Sven Nykvist a much deserved Oscar.

The Last Emperor is a life-time-spanning epic biopic on the life of Pu Yi, the final emperor of China. Vittorio Storaro won a much deserved award for Best Achievement in Cinematography for his incredible work on the film, and this was far from the only Oscar won by The Last Emperor. The film also won Academy Awards for music, editing, costuming, sound design, art direction, writing, directing, and even Best Picture.

Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam war masterpiece Apocalypse Now garnered eight Academy Award nominations and won two of them: one for Best Sound and one for Best Cinematography awarded to Vittorio Storaro. This is Vittorio Storaro’s second and final entry on our list, though he did win the Best Cinematography Oscar on one other occasion for Reds in 1981. Storaro’s work on Apocalypse Now is made even more impressive by the extreme conditions under which the film was shot.

Days of Heaven was Terrence Malick’s second feature film following his 1973 debut with Badlands. Nestor Almendros won the Best Cinematography Oscar for his work on the film, and he certainly had his work cut out for him. Days of Heaven was famously shot almost entirely during golden hour, the slim window of time just before sunset and just after sunrise when the sky provides the richest light. Days of Heaven is a gorgeous film, packed with golden exteriors and beautiful views.

Steven Spielberg’s gut-wrenching holocaust film is rich in theme, tone, heart, and cinematography. Janusz Kaminski won the Best Achievement in Cinematography Oscar for his stark black and white photography with the only splash of color being the little girl’s red jacket.

Schindler’s List was Janusz Kaminski’s first collaboration with Steven Spielberg. The two became close collaborators and Kaminski would go on to shoot every Steven Spielberg film that followed.

Birdman or (the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) earned nine Academy Award nominations and won four of them, including the Best Achievement in Cinematography Oscar for Emmanuel Lubezki. Director Alejandro G. Iñárritu and Emmanuel Lubezki would both win again at the Oscars the very next year with The Revenant. Birdman’s execution of the single-take style is perhaps the best that this novel filmmaking style has ever been pulled off.

Ang Lee’s martial arts wu-xia epic is both an excellent film and an important bridge for mainstream audiences into the world of Hong Kong filmmaking. For many audience members, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was their first exposure to the wu-xia style of martial arts and brought new fans to the flourishing genre of martial arts films. Peter Pau’s gorgeous cinematography is a big draw to the film for those who may not be as interested in action films.

Roma is a rare instance of a director serving as their own cinematographer. It is a rarity for an individual to fill both of these roles simultaneously but it does happen from time to time with those who have mastered their craft. Paul Thomas Anderson and Quentin Tarantino have both served as their own cinematographers on occasion. In Roma, Alfonso Cuarón directs and serves as his own DP, and the results are beautiful.

Doctor Zhivago continued David Lean’s trend toward massive spectacle and vistas in his films. Some critics have noted that the priority for grand spectacle may have begun to overshadow both the characters and the story by the time Lean released Doctor Zhivago, but the visual grandiosity is impossible to deny.

Freddie Young won his second Oscar for Best Cinematography working with David Lean and would go onto to win a third for Ryan’s Daughter in 1970.

In the George Roy Hill classic Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, cinematographer Conrad Hall earned his first of three Academy Awards. Conrad Hall was featured earlier on this list for his posthumous win for Road to Perdition. His career spanned many decades as the Hollywood landscape changed and evolved over time.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is a timeless classic of the western and adventure genres. It’s a fun time through and through and features a flawless screenplay from writing legend William Goldman.

Stanley Kubrick’s 18th century period piece, Barry Lyndon, was a challenging film to light and photograph, but cinematographer John Alcott was up to the task and earned an Academy Award for all of his hard work. Much of the film was shot using only candlelight present practically within each shot. Kubrick wanted the film to resemble paintings of the time which required meticulous planning, blocking and staging.

For his third collaboration with director Denis Villeneuve, Roger Deakins finally won his first Oscar for best achievement in cinematography after receiving 12 prior nominations that went unawarded. Blade Runner 2049 is stunning in its visual spectacle.

Every single shot has had so much thought and care put towards it. From the vistas, to the framing, to the use of striking color palettes, Blade Runner 2049 is a non-stop feast for the eyes. It is a true cinematographer’s film.

Back when the Best Cinematography Oscars were still divided into black & white and color as distinct categories, The Third Man won the Oscar in the black and white division. Robert Krasker’s high-contrast noir visuals of post-war Vienna remain just as captivating today as they did back in 1949. The Third Man was also nominated for Best Director and Best Editing. This was Robert Krasker’s only nomination at the Academy Awards.

David Lean’s magnum opus, Lawrence of Arabia is a three hour and 48 minute long epic. The film is chock full of massive vistas and masterful wide shots, and the entire nearly-four-hour film is beautiful in varied ways. Freddie’s Young’s visuals are huge in scope and spectacle. Lawrence of Arabia is a gorgeous epic of massive proportions.

Everything about the film is humongous and dialed in for spectacular results. Beyond the staggering cinematography, Lawrence of Arabia tells a sweeping story, features incredible acting, and was incredibly influential for the editing techniques it pioneered.