The crew originally wanted to shoot the entire pilot in Miami, but during the first two weeks of filming, three hurricanes went by: Katrina, Rita, and Wilma. Since further filming was to take place during the hurricane season, and it was not possible to get insurance, the crew was forced to move to elsewhere. Though the state of Florida offered a US$450,000 subsidy, the "Dexter" crew relocated to Los Angeles. Executive producer Sara Colleton explained that the filming crew tried to create a different version of Miami in Los Angeles, that differed from the "glossy look" Miami has in ' and "Miami Vice". "Dexter" was shot in HD; cinematographer Romeo Tirone said he experienced some difficulties because HD "sees everything." As opposed to Dexter's "disturbing" environment, Tirone tried to give Rita's home a "warmer, safer, happier place" with "a dark side to it," doing so by letting more light come through the windows. Editor Elena Maganini was contacted by episode director Michael Cuesta after he saw her previous work with director John McNaughton; Maganini had previously worked on a serial killer movie entitled '. Michael Cuesta said that when he met Elena he "...thought she had great instincts, was relaxed and didn’t pretend to know exactly who this character was. " He said that "...that, and all her work with John McNaughton, helped convince me to bring her onto the pilot. She’s done serial killers; she’s done noirs. She gets that world. "