Rex Ballard
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Rex Ballard is a cinematographer with a renowned career in movies, music videos and television programs. Ballard served for seven years as the Principal Cinematographer of ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," and is currently the Director of Photography for the program.
With more than 30 years of industry experience from all arenas of television entertainment, Ballard has traveled the world working on a variety of projects including documentaries for National Geographic and The History Channel, and camera work for television programs such as "Nanny 911," "Kid Nation," "Matlock" and "The Merv Griffin Show." Ballard has also been behind the camera for artist music videos including Tony Bennett, BB King, The Neville Brothers and The Pointer Sisters as well as developing commercials and features for most major national broadcast networks and many national brands.
In his professional field, Ballard is also a proven innovator, inventing a special camera crane for filming inside operating rooms as part of his 30 years of work with Medtronic, filming surgeries used to educate individuals in the medical profession. The crane he developed allows surgeons to teach as they are operating on the patient without the filming process obstructing the view or surgical work in any way. In the early 1980's, Ballard also helped design, build and manufacture The Barber Baby Boom, a 100% mechanical jib arm that was the first of its kind in the industry. Additionally, Ballard designed a moveable jib base specifically to address the challenges of filming on construction locations for ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." Engineered with special tires so the jib can be moved from location to location and he later went on to develop a motorized version of the jib to make set-up and movement even easier that has been used in recent seasons of the program.
In 2008, Ballard teamed up with professional photographer Tamara Lackey and the two began working together to create two educational and instructional DVDs in 2010. In January the pair released "Inside Contemporary Children's Photography" for a professional photography audience, giving viewers with hands-on instruction, a behind-the-scenes look at studio and on-location photo shoots, and information on running a successful portrait photography business.
In October 2010 Ballard and Lackey released a consumer DVD titled "Tamara Lackey's Capturing Life through (Better) Photography," an entertaining and educational video to provide point-and-shoot and SLR photographers with simple tips and tricks that transform everyday snapshots into little works of art. Ballard once again brought his decades of professional acumen to the project, creating a show that resembles more of a prime-time television special than that of an educational DVD.
Endorsements: Brady Connell: Executive Producer of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" – "Rex is an institution to the motion picture industry"
Jen Lane, Director of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" – "Rex has a natural eye for framing and composition"