After graduation he landed a trainee position with Warner Brothers,[2]: 27 but left to work as a gofer for still photographer Bill Langley.
[3]: 29 In 1969, he left Hollywood to work as a director of photography for the Dallas office of TV commercial production company N. Lee Lacy/Associates.
He returned to Hollywood permanently in 1972[2]: 27 where he worked—mainly on low budget films[3]: 29 —as an lab technician, still photographer, assistant director, and assistant cameraman, graduating to second unit director of photography on Hell Raiders, It's Alive, Cat People and others.
[1] Before becoming a feature film cinematographer, he had "earned his reputation for innovative and sometimes risky cinematography" in commercials, many of which had won awards.
[3]: 29 He mainly shoots action films, especially films by Tony Scott, such as Top Gun, Beverly Hills Cop II, Revenge, and True Romance, and John Woo, such as Mission: Impossible 2, Windtalkers, Hostage, and Paycheck.