1927 Born in Los Angeles, California.

1939 First photographs using an Argus C-3 35mm camera, a gift from his father.

1948-49 Assistant to photographers Wallace Seawell and Paul Hesse.

1948-54 Exhibition of photographs of jazz musicians and dancers (1948) leads to representation by Globe Photos.

1951-52 Commissioned by Alexey Brodovitch, art director at Harper’s Bazaar, to illustrate articles on theater and culture in Los Angeles; photographic coverage of films includes Limelight (1952), Hans Christian Andersen (1952), and The Desert Rats (1953).

1953 Assigned by six magazines, including Collier’s, Harper’s Bazaar, and Pageant, to photograph Judy Garland making A Star Is Born (1954) at Warners. Subsequently hired by Warners to cover the filming of an added sequence, "Born in a Trunk;" resulting image becomes his first Life cover (1954). This marks the first time a studio hires a "special," or unit, photographer specifically to generate images for sale to magazines.

1954-71 When freelancing as a special photographer for the studios becomes a possibility, leaves Globe, contributing photographs to American Weekly, Collier’s, Harper’s Bazaar, Life, Look, New York Times, and Vogue. Garland photographs lead to more than 125 motion picture assignments, including The Man with the Golden Arm (1955), Raintree County (1957), Can Can (1960), My Fair Lady (1964), The Graduate (1967), The Lion in Winter (1968), Rosemary’s Baby (1968), They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? (1969), Catch-22 (1970), Klute (1971), The Cowboys (1972), The Tamarind Seed (1974), and Zandy’s Bride (1974).

C. 1963 Devises first remote radio-controlled camera for on-set still photography.

C. 1964 Devises brackets to attach 35mm camera to motion picture camera, enabling him to shoot where other still photographers could not and to achieve stills identical to motion picture footage. Codesigns "sound blimp" to permit simultaneous still photography during live-sound motion picture "takes."

1974-80 While in semiretirement in Ireland writes photography books and translates (and illustrates with photographs) ancient Irish poetry.

1980- Continues special assignments on films, including The Nighthawks (1980), The Pirates of Penzance (1982), and The Name of the Rose (1986).

With Richard Schickel, The Platinum Years (New York: Ridge Press, 1974).

Voices from Ancient Ireland (London: Pan, 1981).

Museum of Modern Art, New York, The Family of Man, 1955.

International Museum of Photography at George Eastman House, Rochester, Photography at Mid-Century, 1959.

Privately organized traveling exhibition, World Exhibition of Photography, 1964, 1968, 1973.

American Cultural Center, Paris, solo exhibition, 1979.

National Portrait Gallery, London, Stars of the British Screen, 1985.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Los Angeles, CA, Retrospective, 1998.

Museum of Modern Art, New York