The American Society of Cinematographers has announced its list of nominees.  Here they are, with nary a surprise in sight:

"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" (Roger Deakins)
"Atonement" (Seamus McGarvey)
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Janusz Kaminski)
"No Country for Old Men" (Roger Deakins)
"There Will be Blood" (Robert Elswit)

I really thought the guild would go for Harris Savides' work in either "American Gangster" or "Zodiac," since, in talking to the majority of the big names in this field over the last few weeks for a separate piece, his is the most lauded lenser of the bunch from within their ranks.  Eric Gautier seemed a decent bet for capturing the American West so gorgeously in "Into the Wild," not to mention the paitnerly qualities of Dariusz Wolski's work in "Sweeney Todd."  But I can certainly live with this line-up.

According to the ASC's press release (published below), Roger Deakins is the first lenser to grab two nominations in one year from the guild.  Each of his nods are well deserved to say the least, and it really does seem foregone that he's well on his way to his first Oscar next month.

In any case, this wouldn't be a shocking final five at the Oscars, with outside shots still possible for Gautier and Wolski.  Sasha Stone has an ASC/Oscar comparison chart up over at Awards Daily if you want to crunch the numbers.

Here's the full press release:

LOS ANGELES, January 7, 2008 — THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD and NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN with cinematography by Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC; THERE WILL BE BLOOD by Robert Elswit, ASC; THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY by Janusz Kaminski; and ATONEMENT by Seamus McGarvey, BSC have been nominated in the Feature Film category of the 22nd Annual American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) Outstanding Achievement Awards competition. The winner will be announced here during the awards gala on January 26, at the Hollywood and Highland Grand Ballroom.

Deakins is the first cinematographer to claim two nominations in one year in the ASC Feature Film category. He was previously nominated five times and won twice (THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, THE MAN WHO WASN’T THERE). This is the fourth ASC nomination for Kaminski, the second for Elswit, and the first for McGarvey.

“In the opinion of their peers, these four talented individuals have set the contemporary standard for artful cinematography in a very competitive field,” says Russ Alsobrook, ASC who chairs the organization’s Awards Committee. “They all succeeded in helping to create a sense of time and place while evoking emotional responses that were in tune with the intentions of the directors and actors.”

Deakins is from England, Kaminski is from Poland, McGarvey is from Ireland, and Elswit is a native of the United States.

“Artful cinematography is a global language, which frequently goes unnoticed by critics and the general public because it is usually designed to be unintrusive,” says ASC President Daryn Okada. “It requires innate talent, the ability to master a complex and constantly evolving craft, and a penchant for collaborating with many people for a common goal. Our purpose is to let our colleagues know we appreciate their artistry.”