Alec Soth

Alec Soth is an American photographer born in Minnesota 1969. His work is noted for having both a cinematic and folkloric feel to it. This is because they often hint at a story behind the image. For shooting he uses an 8x10 camera that he claims is extremely difficult to work with. This is because not only its size but also the shallow depth of field and the extreme light sensitivity. The first thing that one notices when looking at his work is how simple the composition is. There doesn't seem to be any elaborate sets or props. There is simply the subject and the natural environment. This is due not only to the subject matter he shoots but also the camera he uses. By using a large format camera he is able to capture the environment and the simplicity of it. He no longer has to worry about what should be in the photo and what should be left. Instead he just captures the entire environment in a way that only a large format camera could do. However, even though he can shoot much more with a large format camera, he is still selective of what he shoots. Most of his object or people are mundane. They are simple objects that, although boring by themselves, makes the viewer wonder about how they came to be. It is this that make his images so successful.They don't tell a story but rather show that there is a story that might exist.