VETERAN German cinematographer Michael Ballhaus, who brought his trademark panoramic tracking shot to the works of Robert Redford, Martin Scorsese and Rainer Werner Fassbender, has died. He was 81.

    Ballhaus passed away Tuesday evening in Berlin after a short illness, the German publishing house Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt (DVA), which published his autobiography in 2014, said Wednesday in a statement.

    “Michael Ballhaus was a cinematographer who created unforgettable images. And he was a man with a sense of style, subtlety and a political commitment,” DVA’s Thomas Rathnow, a publisher with Random House Germany, said in his statement.

    The German cinematographer received three Oscar nominations during his career, for work on “Gangs of New York,” “The Fabulous Baker Boys” and “Broadcast News.”

    Born in August 1935 in Eichelsdorf, Germany, Ballhaus started in film after helmer Max Ophuls, a relative, allowed him onto the set of “Lola Montes” in 1955.

    He followed director Peter Lilienthal to New York to handle the camera work on “Dear Mr. Wonderful” in 1981. A year later, Ballhaus worked with John Sayles on “Baby, It’s You.”

    Over a long Hollywood career, Ballhaus’ credits included “Goodfellas” for Martin Scorsese, Robert Redford’s “The Legend of Bagger Vance” and “Air Force One” for Wolfgang Petersen. Scorsese first picked Ballhaus to lens the 1985 dark comedy “After Hours” and they instantly connected.(SD-Agencies)