Dunkirk
Every single one of these nominees should be admired for their achievements in cinematography, but Dunkirk blew me away with how Christopher Nolan and Hoyte van Hoytema immersed the audience in the action. The crowning achievement, in my mind, is that they shot the aerial scenes without any computer gimmicks. Using authentic WWII spitfires, van Hoytema strapped cameras to the outside of the planes to showcase the stunning seascape below and provide close-up imaging of the plane in motion. They also invented new techniques to fit a camera inside the cockpit, because Nolan’s vision was to capture the experience of a dogfight as realistically as possible. The lighter IMAX camera had custom-made periscope lenses to pan and tilt, following the action as the pilot would see it. The incredible production development aside, the results onscreen are magnificent. With every barrel roll and turbulent shifting of the tides, the audience is dropped into the action itself, into the terrifying survival story of Dunkirk.