How did Edward Weston photograph natural objects such as shells and vegetables?

Edward Weston photographed natural objects like shells and vegetables by employing a "straight" photographic aesthetic that emphasized sharp focus, clear detail, and formal composition. His approach involved several key techniques:12

• Equipment and Settings: Weston primarily used an 8x10-inch view camera, which allowed for high-resolution detail. He stopped his lenses down to the smallest possible aperture to achieve maximum depth of field and all-over sharpness.12
• Composition: He rejected the Pictorialist practice of manipulating images in the darkroom or cropping negatives. Instead, he insisted that the final image be fully composed on the camera's ground glass prior to exposure.12
• Isolation: By isolating subjects from their natural context and any reference to the outside world, Weston removed scale and background distractions. This allowed the objects to function as self-contained designs and metaphors for organic life.12
• Printing: He utilized smooth-surface papers that recorded the maximum range of tone and texture, moving away from the soft-textured papers common in his earlier work.1

This method was central to his work with Group f.64, a collective dedicated to purist, highly detailed photography.12