I wanted to give you a break from digisocped birds this morning (or maybe I wanted one myself) but going back through the images on my SX20IS I am reminded that no one goes to the Rio Grande Valley of Texas for the scenery.

This little still life, perhaps a bit sad unless you can see the larger picture of nature at work, comes from my largely fruitless trip to a Photo ranch on the north edge of the Valley, where I hoped to photograph larger wildlife. There is beauty in this random scatter of feathers, in the fine details and the pattern. I think they might be Pyrrloxia, and are undoubtedly the remains of a Sharp Shinned Hawk meal.

Canon SX20IS at about 290mm equivalent (zoomed in for the detail) @ f5.0 @ 1/200th @ ISO 200. Landscape program.

Processed in Lightroom with a bit of Recovery, Fill Light, Blackpoint right, added Clarity and Vibrance, and Sharpen narrow edges preset.