Do a good job on a good film and you're on the map. Do a great job on a bad movie and not very many people will think of you.

Do a good job on a good film and you're on the map. Do a great job on a bad movie and not very many people will think of you.

At the beginning of my career, I shot a lot more documentaries because I liked the adventure, and probably also because it was easier, and still is easier, for women DPs to shoot documentary than it is to shoot fiction.

I think women have made progress in cinematography, contrary to women directors, who I think have regressed. There are many more women cinematographers than when I started.

I always start a movie by being very firm and very hard and very, very serious, and then I can relax a little more once I've gained respect. That's part of the job - you have to earn the respect of your crew.

As important as it is to learn the techniques of cinematography, you also have to learn how to deal with the movie set, with show business. I came up with a cinematographer who is very talented, but she was never quite able to handle everything else you have to do - dealing with the producer and the crew and the time frame that you have to follow.

I have a 22-year-old son, and when my son was born I made a decision to raise him. My husband and I took turns working, and it's easier to raise a kid in the documentary world, where you go away for two weeks or three weeks rather than the months that you spend on a feature. That was and still is much more open to women DPs than the world of fiction.