Hexagonal ZnO films with different observed orientations were deposited on glass substrates at temperatures below 200-degrees-C by r.f. sputtering of a ZnO target using an oxygen and argon gas mixture. Orientations with the (002) planes of the crystallites parallel to the substrate, or with the (100) planes parallel to the substrate, or films in which the (101) peak is dominant in their X-ray diffraction spectra have been obtained by selecting the deposition parameters. The partial pressure of the oxygen in the sputtering gas, the distance between target and substrate, the substrate temperature during film nucleation and the input power each affect (to varying degrees) the observed crystallite orientation obtained. Polycrystalline ZnO films made in the presence of excess oxygen or at a high sputtering gas pressure tend to have the c axis parallel to the substrate and they exhibit a large photoresponse, while films sputter-deposited with a low partial pressure of oxygen tend to have the c axis perpendicular to the substrate and may have no detectable d.c. photoresponse. The availability of oxygen during sample preparation has a significant affect on the slow photoresponse of the resulting ZnO films.