D.W. Griffith's cinematographer, and the man who, with DWG, helped create "the grammar of film." G.W. Bitzer made "The Birth of A Nation" in 1915.

"Golden Boy" in 1939 helped establish the language of how to shoot a boxing match, and "Key Largo" in 1948 is a classic -- both movies display Karl Freund's work to great advantage.

"The Little Foxes" and "Citizen Kane" and the invention of Deep Focus -- all in one year, 1942. He's the man!! He died too young. We can only imagine what he might have accomplished had he lived beyond 44 years. Toland wrote, "Of all the people who make up a movie production unit, the cameraman is the only one who can call himself a free soul. He is certainly the least inhibited ... for the simple reason that while the work of the others is visually obvious at the time it is being performed, the work of the cameraman is not revealed until twenty-four hours later when the film which has passed through his camera is flashed upon the screen in a projection room. While he is actually making a scene, no one can rightfully say, 'I don't like the way you are doing that; suppose we try it this way.'"

1942 is the year of "The Magnificent Ambersons," Orson Welles's magnificent, flawed masterpiece. Edited by the studio behind Welles's back, the film finally fails. But its look, its energy, and the sheer genius of its lighting and the elegance with which its camera moves are the work of Stanley Cortez.

Tedline chooses for Hickox "The Big Sleep" in 1944, but Hickox, who worked all the time and generally at a level that can only be called workman-like, will always be remembered for "Them" in 1954. Don't miss it!!

Tedline chooses 1947, the year of "So Well Remembered" (diphtheria, windows), for the exceptionally gifted Freddie Young. Pictured here with David Lean with whom he worked on many films, most particularly "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Dr. Zhivago." Young wrote at the end of his life, referring to CGI and other modern developments: "... a lot of creativity has been taken away from the cameraman whereas in our day we had to do it all in the camera. You had to use your imagination...I think I worked during the best years of the film industry."

Both cinematographer and director ("A Patch of Blue" in 1965), Guy Green earns this honor for two films directed by David Lean, "Great Expectations" and "Oliver Twist." He captures perfectly what one feels Charles Dickens would have wanted a black-and-white movie of his novels to look like -- even though Dickens died before movies were born.

"12 Angry Men" directed in 1956 by Sidney Lumet, who writes compellingly about Kaufman's genius in shooting this film, in his book "Making Movies." Other Kaufman movies include "On the Waterfront," "The Fugitive Kind" (also discussed in Lumet's book), and "Splendor in the Grass." "Splendor ..." was shot in color -- superbly -- but Kaufman's true genius lay with black and white. Kaufman (left) is pictured here with Lumet (right) on "12 Angry Men." That's an actor seated in the corner.

Tedline chooses 1967, the year of Hall's work on "In Cold Blood." Filmed in black and white to give this harrowing true story the look of a documentary, "In Cold Blood" features one moment which has gone down in cinematographic history: rain outside a window reflects on a cold-blooded killer's face to provide him the tears he cannot bring himself to cry as he faces execution. Among Hall's achievements are "American Beauty" and "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid."

Tedline assigns 1971, the year of Bertolucci's "The Conformist," a veritable compendium of cinematographic language, to this remarkable DP. Other films? Well, let's see, there's "Apocalypse Now," "Reds," and "The Last Emperor."

Fujimoto's first outing as a DP is arguably his best -- Terrence Malick's "Badlands" in 1973, although "The Silence of the Lambs" and "Philadelphia" are significant accomplishments.

1975. "Chinatown." Need more be said? The look of this movie is brilliant. This look has inspired many look-alikes, but not many look-as-goods. He pushed the camera to its limits.

1979 is the year of "Days of Heaven," Almendros's defining work. Almendros believed that natural light was the only light and certainly the most beautiful light. He rejected the approaches to lighting of the 1940s and 50s: key lights & backlights, for example. And he was spared the so-called advances of the 1990s. As Rustin Thompson wrote in MovieMaker Magazine in 1998, "He respected light's truth-telling element, the way it can expose and conceal. He will always be remembered as a cinematographer of absolute truth."

Tedline assigns the year of "Raging Bull" to its DP, Michael Chapman. Here's a cinematographic genius. He held camera for "Jaws." He DPed "The Last Detail" and "Taxi Driver" and he's been given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the ASC (American Society of Cinematographers). His favorite director is Godard, and his favorite movie is "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein."

1999 is the year of "Amores Perros". "Frida" (2001). "8 Mile" (2001). "25th Hour" (2002). "21 Grams" (2002). "Brokeback Mountain" (2004). "Babel" (2006). The list says it all, and no more need be said. He's ridiculously young to have enjoyed so much success.

Elswit's work on "Good Night and Good Luck" (2005) created a black-and-white look which perfectly captures what we remember as the time of Edward R. Murrow, the 50s, McCarthy, and early television. The elegance of this work along with the work Elswit has done on the movies of P.T. Anderson ("Boogie Nights," "Magnolia," Punch-Drunk Love") and "Syriana" award him recognition at this time, in the prime of his career.