Abstract: Soft X-ray microscopy has unique advantages in the study of biological specimens. It can provide micrographs of living hydrated thick samples and their elemental distribution with high resolution. The advantages and contrast of soft Xray microscopy are described briefly, and the basic characteristics of the microscopy technology such as SXCM, TXM, STXM, Gabor holography and diffraction are tabulated. An overview is also given of the progress of soft Xray microscopy at the National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory in Hefei.