This morning The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) announced their nominees for the 2012 ASC Awards, with five films and cinematographers nominated for the coveted honors, including a few surprises.

Below are the five nominees, via RopeofSilicon:

– Guillaume Schiffman for The Artist
– Jeff Cronenweth for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
– Robert Richardson for Hugo
– Hoyte van Hoytema for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
– Emmanuel Lubezki for The Tree of Life

At this point, Emmanuel Lubezki seems like a near-lock for The Tree of Life, although the tides may turn in the next several weeks. The notable absence from this list is Janusz Kaminski for Steven Spielberg’s War Horse, which seems to be steadily declining from the Oscar race. Meanwhile, the inclusion of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a pleasant surprise. Any other glaring snubs or surprises on the list?

Photo: A shot from Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life.