In the 1930s, Edward Weston (1886-1958) helped form the influential Group f/64 with other notable photographers such as Ansel Adams, Imogen Cunningham, and Willard van Dyke. His sharp, brilliantly printed images are some of the finest twentieth-century photographic works. Weston's work helped photography gain recognition as an art form in its own right.

Edward Weston was born on March 24, 1886 in Highland Park, Illinois. As a child, he saved pennies to buy used photographic equipment. At the age of 16, his father gave him a Kodak Bulls-Eye number two camera. Weston began to take pictures at his aunt's farm and in the parks of Chicago. In 1903, at the age of 17, Weston first exhibited his work at the Chicago Art Institute.

After the earthquake and fire in San Francisco on April 19, 1906, Weston traveled to California to take a job as a surveyor for San Pedro, Los Angeles, and the Salt Lake...