Although one of the best reviewed movies of 2006, Letters from Iwo Jima received its only Academy Award for Sound Editing. But visually, the film is a marvel, too especially considering how many of the scenes are set in the island's tunnels. Director of Photography Tom Stern previously handled the camera for Clint Eastwood on Million Dollar Baby, Mystic River and Flags of Our Fathers.

In an interview with American Cinematographer, Stern talked about the techniques the crew employed to get their shots in the California desert, and how he and Eastwood first experimented with digital cameras before settling on traditional film stock. See the results for yourself.