> That lens has done an *excellent* job of capturing the breast > feathers' structure. I used to keep birds (parrots mostly) and > that's what their breast feathers look like when seen close up. > Robins are much the same.
Well, I'm not so sure... http://trc.ucdavis.edu/mjguinan/apc100/modules/Integument/hair/feathers2/feathers5.html http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=15&cat=1829&articleid=2776 http://www.ummz.lsa.umich.edu/birds/Anatomy/feathers/feather_parts.html I think that the photo is showing the barbs but not the barbules, and (as mark has suggested) has sort of "sharpened" the barbs to provide a high ~apparent~ detail without actually showing the detail. Fred
