Greg Gardiner

Biography

Greg Gardiner, whose birth name is Gregory B. Gardiner, is an American cinematographer and director of photography born in New York City. He has built a long career in film and television, working across comedy, science fiction, family entertainment, drama, and action productions.

Early Career

Gardiner began his professional career in the film industry's lighting department. Early credits included work as a gaffer on productions such as Chained Heat, Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold, Repo Man, and To Live and Die in L.A. This experience in lighting helped him develop the technical foundation that later shaped his work as a cinematographer.

Rise as a Cinematographer

Gardiner moved into cinematography during the late 1980s and early 1990s. One of his early notable projects was Suture (1993), an independent thriller directed by Scott McGehee and David Siegel. His black-and-white cinematography on the film earned him the Cinematography Award at the 1994 Sundance Film Festival and a nomination for Best Cinematography at the Independent Spirit Awards.

This recognition helped establish Gardiner as a cinematographer capable of creating distinctive visual styles for feature films.

Hollywood Film Career

During the late 1990s and early 2000s, Gardiner expanded his work into larger studio productions. His credits included Orange County (2002), Big Trouble (2002), and Men in Black II (2002). He later worked on films such as Elf (2003), New York Minute (2004), Herbie: Fully Loaded (2005), and She's the Man (2006).

These projects demonstrated his versatility, particularly in comedy, family films, and effects-heavy studio productions.

Race to Witch Mountain

One of Gardiner's notable projects was Race to Witch Mountain (2009), directed by Andy Fickman and starring Dwayne Johnson, AnnaSophia Robb, Alexander Ludwig, and Carla Gugino. Gardiner served as the film's director of photography, handling the visual presentation of the science-fiction adventure.

The film follows a Las Vegas taxi driver who becomes involved with two extraterrestrial teenagers trying to recover their spacecraft while being pursued by government agents and an alien assassin.

Later Film Work

Gardiner continued working on major productions throughout the 2010s. His credits include The Best Man Holiday (2013), Lucky Stiff (2014), Barbershop: The Next Cut (2016), Girls Trip (2017), Night School (2018), Little (2019), and The War with Grandpa (2020).

He also worked on The Journey (2016), Butter (2022), and One True Loves (2023), further expanding his filmography across different genres.

Television Career

In addition to feature films, Gardiner has worked extensively in television. His television credits include projects such as The Tick, Outsourced, Rake, Mistresses, Full Circle, and The Best Man: The Final Chapters.

His television work has allowed him to apply his cinematographic experience to both episodic dramas and comedies.