Michael McDonough ASC BSC studied Fine Art at the Glasgow School of Art before completing postgraduate studies in printmaking at the Royal College of Art in London. In 1991, he received a Prix de Rome scholarship, during which time he developed an interest in cinema as an art form. He subsequently attended the Graduate Film Program at New York University (NYU), earning a Master of Fine Arts degree in film.
Following his studies, McDonough established his career in the United States, initially working as a gaffer before moving into cinematography. While at NYU, he met director Debra Granik, beginning a professional collaboration that continued across several feature films. Their first feature together, Down to the Bone (2004), was McDonough’s first film as director of photography. He subsequently photographed Granik’s Winter’s Bone (2010), which received four Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. McDonough’s cinematography earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination.
McDonough’s feature film credits include Diggers (2006), Quid Pro Quo (2008), Albert Nobbs (2011), Darling Companion (2012), Lay the Favourite (2012), Starred Up (2013), Elsa & Fred (2014) and Sunset Song (2015). These productions brought him into collaboration with directors including Rodrigo García, Lawrence Kasdan, Stephen Frears, David Mackenzie, Michael Radford and Terence Davies.
His work on Sunset Song, directed by Terence Davies, included shooting exterior scenes on 65mm film and interiors using digital cameras with anamorphic lenses. The film received a Technical Achievement nomination at the 2016 London Evening Standard British Film Awards.
Alongside narrative filmmaking, McDonough has worked extensively in documentary production. His credits include Michael Moore’s Bowling for Columbine (2002), on which he worked as a camera operator, and The Shore (2011), directed by Terry George, which won the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film.
McDonough began working more extensively in television drama from 2010 onwards. His credits include Fear the Walking Dead, on which he photographed the pilot and episodes across its first two seasons, and Bosch, for which he worked on multiple seasons. He also co-photographed the limited series I Am the Night (2019), created by Sam Sheridan and directed by Patty Jenkins, and photographed an episode of Downton Abbey.
His subsequent television work includes Mayor of Kingstown and Untamed.