Blain Brown - Cinematographer/Cameraman/DP
I believe that the cinematographer has one primary job: to serve the director’s vision of the story. Some cameramen seem bent on making a different movie than the one the director is making - such behavior is completely unprofessional, even silly. I strive to maintain a fullly professional attitude whether we are shooting 35mm film or DV; High Def 24P or video. Shooting is shooting, I try to make every shot the best it can be.
One of the great pleasures of filmmaking is the collaboration. I take great pride in always making the best effort I can to understand what the director is trying to do and helping him or her achieve that vision.
Some directors prefer to control every aspect of the image and, at the other extreme, some prefer to concentrate on directing the actors and pretty much leave the photography up to me. Most commonly, of course, it’s somewhere in the middle. I am completely comfortable working either way or some combination of the two. I can be very flexible in terms of working method.
The cinematographer has another job, of course, and that is to help the production stay on schedule and on budget. I take those responsibilities very seriously as well. Being a director of photography is much more than just being good at lighting and camerawork (although those are primary, of course); it is also very much a "management" job: you are in charge of a number of people, different departments, equipment, schedules etc. My experience on productions large and small; from very simple to very complex and intense gives me the background to handle the various responsibilities and keep the balance.