Aug 27, 2013 2 min read

LONDON (AP) – Gilbert Taylor was a master of black and white and a master of different universes.

Taylor, the influential “Star Wars” cinematographer who worked on a number of stellar films alongside some of the world’s most famous directors, died on Friday at the age of 99, according to the British Society of Cinematographers.

Dee Taylor, his wife, told the BBC News her husband died at their home on the Isle of Wight off the south coast of England.

He was the director of photography on several distinctive black-and-white classics, including Richard Lester’s Beatlemania chronicle “A Hard Day’s Night,” and had dozens of credits to his name, working with a range of directors, including George Lucas, Alfred Hitchcock and Roman Polanski.

He also worked on television series, including the very popular “The Avengers.”

In a comment cited in the sketch, Taylor said he was “most happy to be remembered as the man who set the look for Star Wars.”

That wasn’t easy. The sketch alludes to clashes with George Lucas and a black-and-white set design that left little room for lighting of any kind. He said the Death Star, in particular, was “like a coal mine.” He solved the problem by punching quartz lights through John Berry’s set.

“I wanted to give it a unique visual style that would distinguish it from other films in the science-fiction genre,” he was quoted as saying. “I wanted `Star Wars’ to have clarity because I don’t think space is out of focus.”

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Online:

Gilbert Taylor’s biographical sketch: http://www.theasc.com/magazine/feb06/taylor/page1.html