--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There's always the temptation, as a…" description: "\"There's always the temptation, as a cinematographer, to make the shot look as perfect as possible.\" — Greig Fraser" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f54/greig-fraser-11649_look_there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinem_2199442.jpg" --- # There's always the temptation, as a cinematographer, to… ![“There's always the temptation, as a cinematographer, to make the shot look as perfect as possible.” quote by Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f54/greig-fraser-11649_look_there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinem_2199442.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f54/greig-fraser-11649_look_there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinem_2199442.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f54/greig-fraser-11649_look_there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinem_2199442.jpg) > “There's always the temptation, as a cinematographer, to make the shot look as perfect as possible.” [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A cinematographer admits the temptation to prioritize flawless visuals over authentic storytelling, highlighting the tension between technical perfection and artistic truth. **In simple terms:** Perfection can distract from the story’s truth. Key Takeaway Prioritize story over flawless shots. Themes artistry perfection visual storytelling integrity Mood thoughtful critical Type professional reflective When to use this quote - film production - advertising - music videos Key Concepts cinematography creative compromise visual aesthetics Questions to Reflect On - When have you chosen authenticity over polish? - How does imperfection enhance a narrative? A Different Perspective Perfect images may lose emotional impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cinematographer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinematographer/) [Temptation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temptation/) ## Related quotes > [In comics, the writer is also the director in a certain way. So if this were a film, you wouldn't tell the cinematographer to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-bemis/in-comics-the-writer-is-also-the-director-in-a-certain-way-so-if-this/) [Max Bemis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-bemis/) > [Film is a good way to fix things. I always go through a stretch where I shoot really well and then watch when I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-huerter/film-is-a-good-way-to-fix-things-i-always-go-through-a-stretch-where/) [Kevin Huerter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-huerter/) > [“Jimmy shot him a look that patently said: ‘Mon noo, Wee-man, whit are ye waitin fur? Ah’ve set ye up tae get in her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-holoran/jimmy-shot-him-a-look-that-patently-said-mon-noo-wee-man-whit-are-ye/) [Jamie Holoran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-holoran/) > [“Cassie shot me a look that could’ve been launched from a missile silo. I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-erik/cassie-shot-me-a-look-that-could-ve-been-launched-from-a-missile-silo/) Nicholas Erik > [I know if I need a shot or get a look, I know where I need to go to get one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-poole/i-know-if-i-need-a-shot-or-get-a-look-i-know-where-i-need-to-go-to/) [Jordan Poole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-poole/) > [Effectively, as a cinematographer, I am always on the lookout for a project that makes me want to go to the cinema.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/effectively-as-a-cinematographer-i-am-always-on-the-lookout-for-a/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [I've spent a lot of time in India. When I was a young cinematographer, I was completely enthralled by the color, the movement, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/i-ve-spent-a-lot-of-time-in-india-when-i-was-a-young-cinematographer/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [I'm confident that the wrong cinematographer on a project can very much derail the mood and the feeling on set when you're trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/i-m-confident-that-the-wrong-cinematographer-on-a-project-can-very/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [Coming out of 2015, I just realized it's OK not to look perfect. It's OK to make sure that your players remain in that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-ellis/coming-out-of-2015-i-just-realized-it-s-ok-not-to-look-perfect-it-s/) [Jill Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-ellis/) > [“But if everyone was made to look perfect, then no one would be special because being special meant being different, by offering something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/but-if-everyone-was-made-to-look-perfect-then-no-one-would-be-special/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [You look so perfect standing there in my American apparel underwear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/5sos/you-look-so-perfect-standing-there-in-my-american-apparel-underwear/) [5SOS](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/5sos/) > [The revolution doesn't always look perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-moran/the-revolution-doesn-t-always-look-perfect/) [Caitlin Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-moran/) > [No matter how plain and simple you are, there's someone who will surely look at you as if you are the most perfect creature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-matter-how-plain-and-simple-you-are-there-s-someone-who-will/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Girls, you shouldn't try to look perfect everyday, because when you need it, you won't be able too pull the wow factor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/girls-you-shouldn-t-try-to-look-perfect-everyday-because-when-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When people look too perfect, it's not cool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gareth-evans/when-people-look-too-perfect-it-s-not-cool/) [Gareth Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gareth-evans/) ## More by Greig Fraser > [Despite what everyone thinks about science fiction, ultimately, at its best, it's about human beings with human emotions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/despite-what-everyone-thinks-about-science-fiction-ultimately-at-its/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [There's a reason why Europeans take siesta in the middle of the day. It's not just because it's hot, but because it doesn't feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/there-s-a-reason-why-europeans-take-siesta-in-the-middle-of-the-day/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [This is the great thing about my friends over at Lucasfilm: They are so committed to the highest quality product that they allow their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/this-is-the-great-thing-about-my-friends-over-at-lucasfilm-they-are/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [You first and foremost need to be honest with the script because you don't want to do anything to screw up the basic fundamentals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/you-first-and-foremost-need-to-be-honest-with-the-script-because-you/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [It sounds very hippy, I'm sorry, but like if you put something out to the world, you'll get the same thing back plus more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/it-sounds-very-hippy-i-m-sorry-but-like-if-you-put-something-out-to/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [I place 'Star Wars' on such a pedestal, like many of my peers do, given that we all grew up with these stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/i-place-star-wars-on-such-a-pedestal-like-many-of-my-peers-do-given/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [Google Earth has become a little bit of an icon in our society. You get on maps and you wanna see what the quality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/google-earth-has-become-a-little-bit-of-an-icon-in-our-society-you/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [It's never been my goal to do 'big' films because a big film in itself is not very interesting to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/it-s-never-been-my-goal-to-do-big-films-because-a-big-film-in-itself/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [I hate to do the same thing twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/i-hate-to-do-the-same-thing-twice/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [Looking through the camera lens reduces noise; as humans we see a million shapes, colours and textures. What the lens does, what art does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/looking-through-the-camera-lens-reduces-noise-as-humans-we-see-a/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [When you have the blue screen, you've got another set of eyes, eight months down the track, designing what you should have been designing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/when-you-have-the-blue-screen-you-ve-got-another-set-of-eyes-eight/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [I think I signed my left kidney to Disney and my right kidney to George Lucas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/i-think-i-signed-my-left-kidney-to-disney-and-my-right-kidney-to/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [Everyone knows that a movie is false. But if as filmmakers we give the audience too many reasons to lose the suspension of disbelief,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/everyone-knows-that-a-movie-is-false-but-if-as-filmmakers-we-give-the/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [I had to forget a lot of 'Star Wars' when I was making 'Dune.' It wasn't hard, though.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/i-had-to-forget-a-lot-of-star-wars-when-i-was-making-dune-it-wasn-t/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) > [It's been a dream to work alongside the talented team at Lucasfilm and ILM to make advancements and improvements to the filmmaking process to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/it-s-been-a-dream-to-work-alongside-the-talented-team-at-lucasfilm/) [Greig Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) [Explore all 58 Greig Fraser quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/) ## More Cinematographer quotes > [Really, anyone in the business who transitions into directing as a writer or editor or an actor or a cinematographer, at some point you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-savage/really-anyone-in-the-business-who-transitions-into-directing-as-a/) [Fred Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-savage/) > [ I've kept the people who've been in my career who I feel are my family. Kathy \[Kennedy\] had been with me since 1978. Janusz… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/i-ve-kept-the-people-who-ve-been-in-my-career-who-i-feel-are-my/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) > [I have developed my eye as a cinematographer through the craft of operating. When I am not operating, I am often anxious, uncertain, restless,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-richardson/i-have-developed-my-eye-as-a-cinematographer-through-the-craft-of/) [Robert Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-richardson/) > [Being a cinematographer taught me a lot. I got to expedite the visions of many directors and learned how to navigate many styles and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reed-morano/being-a-cinematographer-taught-me-a-lot-i-got-to-expedite-the-visions/) [Reed Morano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reed-morano/) > [I don't know one lens from another. That's not my job. It's the cinematographer's job. But I can talk to people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-marshall/i-don-t-know-one-lens-from-another-that-s-not-my-job-it-s-the/) [Penny Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-marshall/) > [For many years I thought, "Well, I need to know a lot more to direct." But I looked around and watched all the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-foner-gyllenhaal/for-many-years-i-thought-well-i-need-to-know-a-lot-more-to-direct-but/) [Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-foner-gyllenhaal/) > [I was interested in photography from my college days and wanted to become a cinematographer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rao-ramesh/i-was-interested-in-photography-from-my-college-days-and-wanted-to/) [Rao Ramesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rao-ramesh/) > [In comics, the writer is also the director in a certain way. So if this were a film, you wouldn't tell the cinematographer to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-bemis/in-comics-the-writer-is-also-the-director-in-a-certain-way-so-if-this/) [Max Bemis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-bemis/) > [As a cinematographer or director, I'm always looking for projects that are able to say a lot with the actor's expressions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reed-morano/as-a-cinematographer-or-director-i-m-always-looking-for-projects-that/) [Reed Morano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reed-morano/) > [I'm usually known for films that look beautiful and attractive, probably because I am a cinematographer too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajiv-menon/i-m-usually-known-for-films-that-look-beautiful-and-attractive/) [Rajiv Menon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajiv-menon/) > [In a period piece, particularly a fantasy, the lighting is your own choice, the lenses are your own choice. It's really a great thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vilmos-zsigmond/in-a-period-piece-particularly-a-fantasy-the-lighting-is-your-own/) [Vilmos Zsigmond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vilmos-zsigmond/) > [I grew up as a cameraman, so it's much easier for me to shoot it myself. I work with an operator and a crew,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-douglas/i-grew-up-as-a-cameraman-so-it-s-much-easier-for-me-to-shoot-it/) [David Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-douglas/) > [When you work as a cinematographer, the actors look to you for reassurance. When you're lighting them, they can never think you're making an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reed-morano/when-you-work-as-a-cinematographer-the-actors-look-to-you-for/) [Reed Morano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reed-morano/) > [Laszlo Kovacs was marvelous. He was very much in the same school as Bill Frake, who was, of course, a great cinematographer as well.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sondra-locke/laszlo-kovacs-was-marvelous-he-was-very-much-in-the-same-school-as/) [Sondra Locke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sondra-locke/) > ['La Notte' is my favorite of the Antonioni pictures and my favorite work of the master cinematographer Gianni di Venanzo, who also shot '8…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-paltrow/la-notte-is-my-favorite-of-the-antonioni-pictures-and-my-favorite/) [Jake Paltrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-paltrow/) [Browse all 81 Cinematographer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinematographer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There's always the temptation, as a cinematographer, to make the shot look as perfect as possible.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Greig Fraser" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinematographer-to-make-the-shot/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cinematographer" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinematographer-to-make-the-shot/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f54/greig-fraser-11649_look_there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinem_2199442.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f54/greig-fraser-11649_look_there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinem_2199442.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f54/greig-fraser-11649_look_there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinem_2199442.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There's always the temptation, as a cinematographer, to make the shot look as perfect as possible.” — Greig Fraser", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Greig Fraser", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greig-fraser/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There's always the temptation, as a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinematographer-to-make-the-shot/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greig-fraser/there-s-always-the-temptation-as-a-cinematographer-to-make-the-shot/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```