Well, in the film world, the term director of photography and cinematographer all refer to the same person. When we think of what a cinematographer does, that person would be our director of photography. But, in the film world, we refer to the term director of photography as the cinematographer.
Most of the time, when a person takes on a job (and we mean a job that involves shooting) he will get a title. But, not all the time, but a lot of the time, his title will change depending on who he is doing that job for. For example, a director of photography might only be the person who takes photos for the director of photography. But, in many cases a director of photography also takes on the role of the cinematographer.
The cinematographer is a person who takes photographs of the action, the scenery, and so on. He’s responsible for the actual filming and editing of the film, which is done by the director or cinematographer. When we say that a director of photography is a cinematographer, we’re not referring to the actual cinematographer, but rather the person/people in charge of the actual filming – the director of photography.
The primary job of a cinematographer is to do their best to make sure all the shots are accurate. The cinematographer is in charge of the camera, the lighting, the sound, the film, and so on. In some films, this is a technical director. In others, the cinematographer is a separate person.
The person who’s in charge of the actual film is the cinematographer. We met him when we went to shoot the game trailer. His name is Mark T.
The camera is in charge of the image. As I mentioned previously, there are four main types of cameras: CCD, reflex, film, and DSLR. Each camera type has different strengths and weaknesses. CCDs are used when a subject is static. Reflexes use a moving camera to take photos. Film cameras are used to take the film. DSLRs are used for fast, high-resolution shots.
The director of photography is someone who decides what the camera should be used in. That is, he decides what camera to use depending on what type of shots are needed. This person is also in charge of the lighting arrangement, camera angles, movement, and overall look. That’s where you put the film; the lighting and movement.
The cinematographer is more or less the guy who takes the film. You will see the cinematographer take shots with a camera and then put them together and create a finished image.
If you’re going to be shooting a movie, there’s no use hiring a cinematographer if you think they’re going to take the pictures. You need a director to make sure everything is in order and that the lighting and all the other details are correct. He also has to get the scene right so that it looks good.
The director does all that work, plus takes care of the editing and the post production. They have to be able to take care of it all. A cinematographer is actually the “assistant director.” They do most of the editing, but he does some of the actual shooting. That is because the cinematographer is usually the guy who takes the film and the director is usually the guy who makes sure it looks good.
