Gale Tattersall

I’ve always been a photo fanatic… my Dad used to shoot home movies on a Bolex in the fifties… Imagine the cost of that now! I started as a photographer, then went to The London Film School and became passionately involved in cinematography.

I sent several years in Australia, working as an operator, for directors such as Bruce Beresford, returned to work in the UK during the Golden Age of Advertising, (Alan Parker, Adrian Lyne, Ridley and Tony Scott etc.)… I then moved into movies, DP’ed movies such as ‘The Commitments’, ‘Wild Orchid’ etc, and then got invited to Hollywood to take over the first ‘Addams Family’ movie… and I’ve been here ever since.

I’ve shot well over 500 commercials, many award winning, for clients such as Coca Cola, Nike, Gatorade etc. I then shot the amazing HBO Tom Hanks Production of “From The Earth to The Moon”… the most expensive and elaborate miniseries ever put together for television. Since then, and several movies and commercials later… I decided to spend more time at home with my family and took over Season 3 of “House MD”, at various times the most highly viewed and popular TV Drama in the world… with over 80 million weekly viewers. I am on my fourth season of House at present, having shot well over a hundred episodes.

During on of our hiatus’s, I shot a Canon commercial for the “Kiss” camera with my regular clients for the Japanese market, and I was asked if I would consider shooting the spot using the EOS 5D Mark II. After a series of tests… my love affair with the HD DSLR platform, and especially the Mark II began. This culminated in the season finale of "House MD" season 6, being shot entirely on the 5D Mark II with Canon lenses, and the end result was met with critical acclaim. It was the first Network Television show to use the Canon DSLR platform , proving without a doubt that used in the right hands, the system was suitable for top productions.

I continue to use the 5D Mark II on House for scenes in every episode, and it has become an indispensable part of our tool kit, producing beautiful photography, along with a huge time and cost saving for many situations. The huge sensor can produce images that are not achievable with any other system… the most cinematic visuals previously impossible to achieve on either 35mm film or other high end digital cameras.