Known for photographing cult-classic television such as Felicity and Monk, Marshall Adams, ASC knows how to identify and respond to a story that subverts expectations. His latest entry comes on the heels of writer-producer Vince Gilligan's Breaking Bad, the genre-defining series about of a chemistry teacher turned meth lord. After a one-episode exploration during that show's fifth and final season, Adams reprised his role behind the camera for seasons 3 through 6 of Gilligan and co-creator Peter Gould's Better Call Saul. Shortly after the final episode aired in August, Adams caught up with Panavision to reflect on his time with the show.
Panavision: How would you describe the cinematography of Better Call Saul?
Marshall Adams, ASC: The look relies on symmetry, simplicity and storytelling. We all love finding symmetry when it lends itself, which, in my opinion, allows you more potential screen time to let the scene unfold within that frame because its interesting and has a lot to say. We often tried to find and hold a frame that worked for the action but, most importantly, was true to the story. As much as possible, we strove to boil each shot down to the information conveyed within it. The simplest frames can often be so elegant in their storytelling.
We also tried to keep the camera operation as minimal as possible. And as funny as it sounds, the operators worked very hard to not operate. Say we were following someone out of a car and walking to meet and talk with another character. Landing when the actor lands is pretty standard, but the hard part is landing in the exact frame that can play out for another 2-3 minutes and not be adjusted. The operators Matt Credle, Jordan Slovin and Wally Sweeterman were so locked-in to exactly where they needed to land that frame, that two months later they'd still know exactly where the frame lines were.
Something else we did was to keep the operation to a single axis. That meant we could pan, tilt or push, but we only got one.
Were there any particular references that inspired the visual approach?
Adams: Vince and Peter often talked about sitting down with Arthur Albert, the cinematographer on seasons 1 and 2, and his crew to watch Bernardo Bertoluccis The Conformist. I know it was a significant influence on them and certainly contributed to the visual approach to Saul, as did the apparent film-noir influences and many of the classic westerns. I certainly had big shoes to fill when I started on Season 3, but the style was a great fit with my own and, with Vince and Peters help, we continued to develop it right up through Season 6.
What brought you to Panavision for this project?
Adams: I had a great working relationship with Panavision in the past, and then in December of 2017, when we were beginning Season 4 of Better Call Saul and I was having a hard time putting together the package that I needed, Bob Foertsch [director of sales and marketing at Panavision Woodland Hills] came to my rescue. I havent done a series without him or Panavision since.
At the beginning 2019, we decided Saul Season 5 was going large format. Again Bob and the whole gang at Panavision helped us put the right package together, and it made all the difference. The Panaspeeds were a perfect match because their speed allowed me a lot of control over the depth of field. We used depth of field as a storytelling device more than I ever had in my career before, even during day exteriors.
How else did Better Call Saul differ from other projects in your career?
Adams: I had done one full episode and a few pickup days on Breaking Bad, so I knew how different the Gilligan-Gould experience was already. After getting Better Call Saul, I went to meet with Vince, Peter, and executive producers Melissa Bernstein and Diane Mercer for lunch, and they were very clear that they were not only going to support anything I wanted to try visually, but theyd rather have to reshoot a scene than feel like I took the safe route and didnt take risks. It was a conversation I'd never had in my career Id never heard of anyone hearing that from the executive producers before!
I quickly realized one of the biggest reasons everyone on the crew was so invested in the show and the stories was the way the producers enabled everyone to think out of the box and bring ideas sometimes even crazy ideas because they wanted to hear them. That and the fact that the show was written by the best writers in the business and everyone from the showrunner to the day players were the nicest folks youd ever want to meet.
How did you get started in this business?
Adams: I had loved the industry since visiting the Rockford Files set as a teenager, so I wanted to explore working as a crew member. I started in camera on smaller projects and had all my days to join the camera local, but I realized I was a terrible camera assistant, mostly because I was so busy watching the lighting, and I really belonged in the electric department. After working my way up and working as a gaffer for a number of years, I really wanted to shoot. The opportunity came along in 1999, with some bumps in the road, and by 2001 I had moved up permanently.
Unit photography by Greg Lewis, courtesy of AMC/Sony Pictures Television. Additional images courtesy of the filmmakers.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/07/2026
Broadcast Management Group (BMG) has announced the appointment of Kathy Samuels ...
01/07/2026
Shade has announced Custom Objects and Automations, a platform expansion releasing June 29, 2026, that adds database and workflow automation capabilities direct...
01/07/2026
FOR-A America has announced the addition of Jaz Wray and Fernando Cruz to its U.S. sales team. Both report to Ernie Leon, Senior VP and Head of Sales and Strate...
01/07/2026
NBC Sports will air all 15 MLB games nationally on Sunday, July 5, across NBC, P...
01/07/2026
Clear-Com has announced a wireless communications upgrade for Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, deploying FreeSpeak II and FreeSpeak Icon systems across both prod...
01/07/2026
England's performance team will use Sony's STATSports APEX GPS tracking system to monitor player physical data in real time during FIFA World Cup 2026 m...
01/07/2026
Adder Technology has announced the appointment of Neil Hillier as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2026. Hillier succeeds Adrian Dickens, who transiti...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. has announced a strategic transaction creating two separate companies. The Production and Playout business will continue as Bitcentral, now own...
01/07/2026
DAZN has announced results from DAZN48, its creator initiative for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Launched in April 2026, the program received thousands of applicatio...
01/07/2026
Sarah Rose, VP, global services, Daktronics (NASDAQ: DAKT), will be inducted into the Information Display and Entertainment Association (IDEA) Hall of Fame at t...
01/07/2026
Gravity Media and the World Economic Forum's production team provided broadc...
01/07/2026
Insight Productions has announced the launch of Insight Storm, a 53-foot mobile broadcast unit built for esports production. The truck is built around a Ross Vi...
01/07/2026
ESPN has announced several content initiatives marking America's 250th anniversary, as part of The Walt Disney Company's Disney Celebrates America pro...
01/07/2026
Eleven production kits, REMI workflows, and cloud distribution bring 40 World Cu...
01/07/2026
The conference also discussed the opportunities offered an industry that is endu...
01/07/2026
The Mountain West Conference has announced the launch of MW , a direct-to-consumer streaming platform powered by Kiswe. The platform will carry live Mountain We...
01/07/2026
New AI Assistant, Multi-channel Audio, ARA2 improvements & more
Tracktion's DAW software has just received its latest major update, gaining a selection ...
01/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
01/07/2026
Exclusive run of limited-edition modelling pedals
Sweetwater and Andertons M...
01/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Manfrotto Introduces UNCOVER, the new premium camera bag collection for modern h...
01/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Powers Houston Tamil Sangam Literacy Competition
Brie Clayton July 1, 2026
0 Comments
Volunteers use ATEM Mini Pro, Blackmagic Desig...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
PlayBox Technology has published State of Broadcast Infrastructure 2026, an in-depth industry research report examining the technologies, operational challenges...
01/07/2026
LONDON, UK, 1 JULY Jigsaw24 has appointed Alan Henry as Head of Sales for Media and Entertainment, reinforcing its continued investment in helping broadcaster...
01/07/2026
Content Vault, the patent-pending secure content distribution platform protecting high-value media from disclosures, theft and unauthorised access, today announ...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. a leading provider of enterprise software and digital media solutions for news, sports and entertainment broadcasters, as well as streaming pla...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Groundbreaking First Nations Screen Business Accelerator launched through nation...
01/07/2026
Chyron Launches the All-New Chyron Academy: A Reimagined, Hands-On Learning Expe...
01/07/2026
Amplium Captures Kawasaki Brave Thunders Game with Blackmagic URSA Cine Immersiv...
01/07/2026
Boris FX Optics Expands Plugin Support to Apple Photos, Capture One, and Affinit...
01/07/2026
UKTV has today announced the appointment of Matt Berry to the newly created role of General Manager - Marketing, effective 1 July.
Matt will take on this senio...
01/07/2026
Sky Zero Footprint Fund-backed TV campaign featuring Deborah Meaden challenges consumers to rethink everyday bathroom wasteWednesday 1 July 2026
Fussy asks Bri...
01/07/2026
Constituency-level analysis reveals where girls miss out most on sport - and where targeted action could unlock more than £640 million in economic and health be...
01/07/2026
Wuppertal July 1, 2026
Riedel and SKAARHOJ Expand Collaboration With SimplyLive IntegrationRiedel Communications today announced an expanded collaboration wit...
01/07/2026
Apple today introduced power-packed updates to Apple Creator Studio, a groundbre...
Known for photographing cult-classic television such as Felicity and Monk, Marshall Adams, ASC knows how to identify and respond to a story that subverts expectations. His latest entry comes on the heels of writer-producer Vince Gilligan's Breaking Bad, the genre-defining series about of a chemistry teacher turned meth lord. After a one-episode exploration during that show's fifth and final season, Adams reprised his role behind the camera for seasons 3 through 6 of Gilligan and co-creator Peter Gould's Better Call Saul. Shortly after the final episode aired in August, Adams caught up with Panavision to reflect on his time with the show.
