Georg William "Billy" Bitzer (April 21, 1872–April 29, 1944) was a cinematographer notable for his close association with D. W. Griffith, working with him on some of his most important films and contributing significantly to cinematic innovations attributed to Griffith.
Prior to his career as a cameraman, Bitzer developed early cinematic technologies for the American Mutoscope Company, eventually to become Biograph Studios. By 1896 Bitzer's career had shifted focus, and from then until 1908 he was employed by Biograph as a newsreel photographer. During this time he pioneered the field of matte photography and made use of innovative lighting techniques.
In 1908 Bitzer entered into his first collaboration with Griffith, A Calamitous Elopement. The two would work together for the rest of Bitzer's career, leaving Biograph in 1912 for the Mutual Film Corporation where Bitzer continued to innovate, perfecting existing technologies and inventing new ones.
The apex of Bitzer and Griffith's collaboration came with The Birth of a Nation, a film funded in part by Bitzer's life savings. Techniques such as the dissolve, fade, and close_up can trace their creation to Bitzer and the production of Birth, which remains the highest_grossing silent film of all time.
For all his innovation, Bitzer did not survive the industry's transition to sound, and in 1944 he suffered a heart attack and died in relative obscurity.
External link
Internet Movie Database Listing (http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0005658/)
Bitzer always believed that unusual photography could only be achieved when there was the proper kind of collaboration between cameraman and director.
Bitzer felt that if the director had clear ideas of the visual effects he wanted to achieve, if he was certain of the composition, the emphasis and the dramatic quality he wanted, the cameraman could become a pliant, creative agent.
Bitzer’s trick gave far better results than he expected because the edge of the white gravel road, which Moore and Pickford were sitting on, reflected sufficient light to give effective illumination to the faces.
The troubleshooting Bitzer was on the ground floor of several early cinematic developments--usually involving a measure of personal risk, such as filming from the cowcatcher of a moving train.
Bitzer would later claim that he didn't think Griffith was "so hot," but when the new employee expressed an interest in directing, the two formed a partnership that would make movie history.
By 1896Bitzer's career had shifted focus, and from then until 1903 he was employed by Biograph primarily as a documentary photographer, and from 1903 onward primarily as the photographer of narrative films.
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