Featuring clips from over one hundred films and interviews with numerous famed directors of photography, the documentary Visions of Light: The Art of the Cinematographer provides a general overview of the history of cinematography by focusing on some of the cinema's greatest visual achievements. Though all periods are covered, from the early days black and white expressionism and experimentation to the refined techniques of modern-day color cinematography, the film refrains from a strict chronology. Instead, Visions of Light is structured around a series of interviews by screenwriter and film critic Todd McCarthy, whose subjects include such notables as Michael Chapman, Ernest Dickerson, James Wong Howe, Gordon Willis, Vittorio Storaro, and Haskell Wexler, among others. These acknowledged greats discuss the details behind the making of their own films, in extended reminiscences providing an illuminating glimpse at their technique and methods. They also speak about the films and cinematographers that most influenced them, allowing the film to present a sense of historical perspective. These conversations, worthwhile as they are, are merely a frame for the documentary's true subject, which can be found in the film clips themselves, which are presented in pristine condition, showing their beauty and richness to full advantage.