Jim Veilleux James " Jim " W . Veilleux was the co - supervisor ( Camera Supervisor ) on together with Ken Ralston , while in the employ of Industrial Light & Magic ( ILM ) . Veilleux expressed a keen interest in computer graphics , and the responsibility of supervising the work done in that department was reverted to him , which included overseeing the work done at the Graphics Group for the Genesis Demo . ( ) Although " The Wrath of Khan " was his only " Star Trek " contribution , causing him to be all but forgotten as far as " Star Trek " was concerned , it was Veilleux , together with Ralston , who were the ones mainly responsible for conceiving and executing the visual look of the original crew as envisioned by director Nicholas Meyer . Veilleux already had an earlier brush with the franchise in 1977 , when he was approached by Producer Robert Goodwin to make visual effects contributions for the television project " " as Goodwin had stated in a progress report dated , 14 October 1977 , " " I need to get with Joe Jennings about the asteroid . If we wish to have one made , I suggest we begin soon . I have access to some existing asteroids through Jim Veilleux , an independent special effects cameraman . He will let us purchase them , or he will photograph them for us if we wish . They are " typical asteroids . " If we are looking for something special , we should build it . " " ( " " , p . 51 ) As " Phase II " shortly thereafter became , Veilleux ' potential contributions did not come to fruition on that occasion . Jim Veilleux has ( co - ) authored two articles on his work for the movie , one that has appeared in the October 1982 issue of " American Cinematographer " , and an article on the same subject that was published in " Starlog photo guidebook Special Effects " , Vol . 4 . Career outside " Star Trek " . Hailing from Providence , Rhode Island , but raised in East Bridgewater , Massachusetts , Jim Veilleux obtained a BS in Nuclear Physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology . Nevertheless , Veilleux had developed in his youth a passion for photography and deviated from the scientific path by obtaining a Master ' s degree in Cinematography from the University of Southern California . After serving as 2nd lieutenant in the US Army during the closing stages of the Vietnam War , he pursued a career in the motion picture industry , which eventually resulted in his stint at ILM . While not an ILM employee when that company was founded , Villieux joined shortly after that company ' s first production , " Star Wars " , and has contributed , mostly as effects cameraman , to some of the earliest productions of the company , " Star Wars : Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back " ( 1980 ) , " Raiders of the Lost Ark " ( 1981 ) , " Dragonslayer " ( 1981 ) , and " Poltergeist " ( 1982 ) , being his last involvement with ILM . Prior to ILM , Villieux worked as miniatures cameraman on the television series " Jason of Star Command " , also working in those years for the Encyclopædia Britannica Educational Corporation as an effects camera man , making educational films . One of these was " Solar System " ( 1977 ) , on which he cooperated with writer / director Thomas G . Smith , and which , catching the eye of ILM ' s founder , , brought both Veilleux and Smith to his attention . Veilleux has only one other recorded motion picture credit to his name after his ILM years , " From Time to Time " ( 1992 ) . After that he left the motion picture industry to work as an independent programmer and web developer , until his passing away in 2013 .