Who was the cinematographer of the 1939 film?

Harold Rosson was the cinematographer of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.

Harold G. “Hal” Rosson served as director of photography on MGM’s fantasy musical. His work helped translate the production’s contrasting worlds to the screen: the Kansas sequences were photographed in black and white and sepia tones, while Oz was designed to burst into Technicolor.

Rosson was an experienced Hollywood cinematographer whose career began in the silent-film era. He worked on films including Treasure Island, On the Town, and Singin’ in the Rain, and he was part of a filmmaking family that included his brothers Arthur and Richard Rosson and his sister Helene.

The Wizard of Oz was not Rosson’s only major color achievement. He and W. Howard Greene had received an Honorary Academy Award for color cinematography on The Garden of Allah in 1936. Rosson is sometimes confused with George Barnes, Arthur Edeson, or James Wong Howe, but those cinematographers worked on other notable films.