All pictures - Pentax 645 Transparency film Nikon LS9000 scanner
Sometimes a subject needs to "speak for itself" and all you have to do is hone it down until what caught your eye in the first place almost composes itself. Theres nothing wrong with simplicity, and nothing wrong with deliberately not letting any "art" interfere with the image. Then whats in the picture becomes more important and significant than the picture itself.
It may require a certain passitivity on the part of us as photographers, and we are certainly more "taking" than "making" a picture. But creative decisions as to what to leave out are often more important than what to include.