This is the best cinematography you’ll see this week

Whenever I’m feeling a little lacking in inspiration, my solution is to seek out other works of art that can get my creative juices flowing again. One favourite that never fails is the art of cinematography. I love how deliberate everything is, from the composition to the lighting to the colour choices and post-production. Every scene is, quite simply, a lesson in visual planning and execution.

So I was delighted to come across this video from Thomas Flight who has compiled together scenes from his favourite and most inspirational films. It’s not a short video, however, it’s chock-full of great info, and an absolute treat to watch.

What makes great cinematography?

What makes cinematography truly great? While opinions may vary, in Thomas’ opinion, a few elements stand out:

1. Storytelling Through Visuals: Cinematography is most powerful when it uses framing, lighting, movement, and composition to support and enhance the story.
2. Cohesive Style: A film’s cinematography should contribute to a consistent and distinctive visual tone that complements its narrative.
3. Innovation and Freshness: The greatest works of cinematography often push boundaries and introduce unique visual approaches that feel both innovative and integral to the story.

One of the strengths of cinematography is that it is usually the result of collaboration. It’s not simply the director’s vision. This is quite different from how a lot of photographers work, we often tend to be lone wolves, which is both a blessing in some ways, and a curse.

If you can find a great team to collaborate with, the results are often multiplied, not just added. In film, you have the director, writer, director of photography, lighting and set and sound design all with multiple inputs, which all contribute to the overall outcome.

Let’s look at a few examples that Thomas uses to illustrate:

Cinematography as a storytelling tool

A prime example of storytelling through cinematography is The Graduate (1967). The film’s opening scene sets the tone for the protagonist Benjamin’s mental state without relying on dialogue or exposition. Instead, the framing does the heavy lifting:

• Visual Confinement: Benjamin is shown as if underwater, his surroundings visually pressing in on him. This symbolizes his isolation and pressure from his parents.
• Party Scene Dynamics: At his graduation party, we never see a traditional establishing shot of the event. Instead, the camera uses long telephoto shots, emphasizing the adults crowding Benjamin from all sides. This visual choice immerses viewers in his suffocating experience and foreshadows the film’s themes of pressure and entrapment.
• Contrast with Mrs. Robinson: Unlike the other adults, Mrs. Robinson’s positioning and framing set her apart. This distinction hints at her unique role in the story.

These visual choices exemplify how composition—a core aspect of cinematography—can deepen the audience’s understanding of a character or theme.

The power of lighting

Just like photography, lighting in cinematography is at the heart of this craft, shaping the mood, emotion, and style of a film. One excellent example is Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life. It’s a landmark in visual storytelling, and much of its power lies in the way it uses light. Cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki created a visual style that feels organic yet transcendent:

• Natural Light as a Muse: The film’s light feels pure, capturing the golden glow of sunlight without artifice. It’s a reminder that cinematic beauty doesn’t have to be constructed—it can emerge from the natural world.
• A Radically Different Approach: The wide lenses, handheld camera, and constant movement created a searching, almost meditative perspective. The camera’s low angles and comprehensive focus mirrored the natural beauty and childlike wonder of life itself.

The art of framing

Finally, just like in photography, composition (or framing) comes together to tell the story. At its most basic, composition can follow conventional patterns: establishing shots, over-the-shoulder mediums, and close-ups. These serve the functional needs of storytelling but may lack distinctiveness. Exceptional composition, however, breaks free from convention to create striking, memorable frames.

Unique composition derives from a myriad of techniques:

• The placement of the horizon line, which alters the viewer’s perspective and emotional response.
• Symmetry or deliberate asymmetry.
• Negative space, which draws attention to emptiness or highlights isolation.
• Leading lines that guide the viewer’s gaze toward a subject.
• Depth and layering, building a three-dimensional effect or flattening an image for artistic purposes.
• Frames within frames, where the environment provides natural boundaries around subjects.

Thomas gives several great examples of directors whose work excels at composition. Among them is Stanley Kubrick’s “Barry Lyndon. Collaborating with cinematographer John Alcott, Kubrick crafted images reminiscent of oil paintings. Static frames, combined with a lack of movement within the shot, enhanced the painterly aesthetic. The use of zoom lenses, rather than dolly shots, flattened the imagery, evoking a sense of stepping closer to or retreating from a canvas rather than moving through a scene.

Composition serves as a tool for conveying emotion. Consider Wim Wenders’ “Paris, Texas”, where the framing reflects the protagonist’s sense of alienation, or Michelangelo Antonioni’s L’Avventura, where vast, empty landscapes reinforce themes of existential disconnection.

Just like still photography, beautiful cinematography can guide us to see the world differently, heightening our appreciation for natural wonders, human faces, or the interplay of light and shadow. It’s a never-ending rich reservoir of inspiration for my photography, and I recommend taking a moment to watch this all the way through. Your next photo shoot will thank you for it!

---