If you are enamored by the look of Chinatown, it's because John A. Alonzo shot the film which earned him the only Oscar nomination of his career. Of Mexican-American and Latino heritage, he went on to work on Lady Sings the Blues; Farewell, My Lovely; Norma Rae; Tom Horn; and the 1983 version of Scarface. On a side note, he mentored John Toll who went on to win two Oscars for Best Cinematography.

Oscar winner for Mississippi Burning, Peter Biziou started working with Alan Parker before branching out to other directors. That resulted in outstanding-looking pictures such as 9½ Weeks, Damage, and City of Joy. Not to miss is the cinematography he captured for Alan Parker: Bugsy Malone. His motto is: "I am a perfectionist, but I'm not obsessional. While I always try to give my best, I also try to never cross the limit of doing something that would endanger the production."

Jan de Bont first made his name by working on Dutch pictures like Turks fruit. Once his talent was recognized by Hollywood, he emigrated to the United States and did further work. As a result, Jan de Bont produced beautiful films such as All the Right Moves, Die Hard, and Black Rain. He's also famous for directing Speed and Twister.

The name may not be familiar to you, but you certainly know his work through Brian De Palma's films. The best he did are Body Double, The Untouchables, and Mission: Impossible. Additional work includes The War of the Roses for Danny DeVito. Remember Rumble Fish? Stephen H. Burum did that, too. It's too bad that he wasn't properly recognized, having been awarded merely one Oscar nomination during his career.

Freddie Francis could work with both sides of the template: black-and-white and color. As a result, he won two Oscars for Sons and Lovers and Glory. Despite not working much as a cinematographer, he was able to produce stunning work with little to no special effects such as Room at the Top, The Elephant Man, The French Lieutenant's Woman, and The Executioner's Song. Elsewhere, Freddie Francis spent a lot of time directing horror and thriller films.

Cinematographers who shoot made-for-TV films don't get enough respect. Three of the greatest miniseries ever produced were handled by Stevan Larner: Roots, The Winds of War, and North and South: Book I. Also, not to be missed on film is Gray Lady Down. While teaching at UCLA, he had Jim Morrison for student.

Oscar winner for Mississippi Burning, Peter Biziou started working with Alan Parker before branching out to other directors. That resulted in outstanding-looking pictures such as 9½ Weeks, Damage, and City of Joy. Not to miss is the cinematography he captured for Alan Parker: Bugsy Malone. His motto is: "I am a perfectionist, but I'm not obsessional. While I always try to give my best, I also try to never cross the limit of doing something that would endanger the production."

Completely underrated during the 90's, the Mexican cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki was responsible for shooting three unbelievably good-looking pictures: Como agua para chocolate, A Walk in the Clouds, and Meet Joe Black. Eventually, he received recognition during the 21st century by being awarded three Oscars among eight nominations.

Remember how stunning and beautiful Marilyn Monroe looked against the Niagara Falls in Niagara? Joseph MacDonald is the one who shot the film. Nominated for three Oscars but never won one, he started working in the 1920's and kept at it until dying young in 1968. Some of his best films are Fourteen Hours, What Price Glory, Mirage, and The Sand Pebbles.

A British cinematographer, Chris Menges is a two-time Oscar winner, having handled some of the most stunning-looking period pictures such as The Killing Fields and The Mission for Roland Joffé. He also shot two more UK films: Local Hero and The Boxer. His motto is: "Being a good DP is about listening. As a DP, you shouldn’t be overly concerned with being a technician. Those skills should be second nature. Instead, you should be driven by vision and a knack for getting on the same page as your director to build vision together."

If you loved Oliver Stone's films, then you loved the way Robert Richardson shot them. He's a three-time Oscar winner, having worked on Platoon, Salvador, Wall Street, JFK, Casino, and The Horse Whisperer. His creed has been: "It's far better to shoot a good picture than a good-looking picture." Indeed so.

A one-time Oscar winner, the French cinematographer shot a wide array of films, resulting in a beautiful composition. There's no particular style he uses, preferring to follow what the director has in mind for his film. Among Philippe Rousselot's best works are The Emerald Forest, Dangerous Liaisons, Henry & June, A River Runs Through It, and Interview with the Vampire.

Leon Shamroy deservingly won the Oscar for Leave Her to Haven. You aren't going to find many well-shot picture as that. Guess how many Oscar nominations he garnered throughout his career? Eighteen which is a record that's tied with Charles Lang. Four wins is also a record that's also shared with Joseph Ruttenberg. Some of his best works are The Robe, Cleopatra, and The Agony and the Ecstasy.

You aren't familiar with the name, but you're exceedingly familiar with his work which won three Oscar nominations. Douglas Slocombe shot all of the three famous movies: Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. He was responsible for other beautiful pictures such as The Blue Max and The Great Gatsby.

If there's anybody who's the best, it's Vittorio Storaro. One word: beautiful. A three-time Oscar winner, he's a longtime favorite of Bernardo Bertolucci, having done brilliant work. His must-see films are Il confirmista, Last Tango in Paris, Novecento, Agatha, Apocalyse Now, The Last Emperor, Tucker: The Man and His Dream, The Sheltering Sky, and Little Buddha.

A longtime cinematographer for Don Siegel's and Clint Eastwood's films such as Dirty Harry, Play Misty for Me, and Sudden Impact, Bruce Surtees was the son of Robert Surtees. The only Oscar nomination of his career was given for Lenny. Clint Eastwood would describe Bruce Surtee's method: "He wasn't afraid to take chances in shooting with low-light contrast. He was always looking to improve shots, and he could do a lot with little equipment in a very short time. He was able to make things happen."

Robert Surtees was a legendary cinematographer who earned three Oscars among thirteen nominations. Black-and-white or color, it didn't matter; he could capture the best of them as illustrated in Quo Vadis, The Bad and the Beautiful, Raintree County, Ben-Hur, the 1962 version of Mutiny on the Bounty, The Last Picture Show, and The Great Waldo Pepper.

A two-time Oscar winner whose work spanned four decades, Geoffrey Unsworth excelled the most in creating unforgettable period and sci-fi pictures such as The Purple Plain, A Night to Remember, The World of Suzie Wong, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Cromwell, Cabaret, Murder on the Orient Express, A Bridge Too Far, and Superman.

If you loved the opening scene of Chariots of Fire, it was shot by David Watkin. His sole Oscar win went to one of the most stunning-looking picture of all time: Out of Africa. A big advocate of the bounce light as a soft light source, he didn't get enough credit for his work on The Devils, Mahogany, and Yentl.

A longtime favorite of Woody Allen, Alan J. Pakula, and James Bridges, Gordon Willis didn't get the moniker "The Prince of Darkness" for nothing. He could highlight the degree of blackness as seen through The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, and The Godfather Part III. Another masterpiece in his filmography was Comes a Horseman. Unfortunately, Gordon Willis never won an Oscar in his lifetime.