alton photographed some of the most famous films noir of the classic period. he began as a lab technician in los angeles in the 1920s, later becoming a cameraman within four years. he moved to france with ernst lubitsch to film backgrounds for "the student prince in old heidelberg" (1927) and ended up staying for one year heading the camera department of paramount pictures's joinville studios. in 1932, he moved to argentina where he shot many spanish-language films and designed the country's first sound film studio for lumiton and argentina sono film.