This is Esther. She’s a tough old bird, survivor of two raccoon attacks (she lives in a fortress now), and an all around sweet chicken. She is several years old, but still lays regularly and helps out in the garden, always underfoot. Chickens are a great addition to any garden, provided you keep them out of the most edible plants. She spends her days on snail patrol, and gets along great with the cats.

I took the shot on a sunny afternoon, sitting inside a small greenhouse and shooting through the open door. I had the lens on auto focus, because while chickens are generally perfectly still in the instant, they move in tics every second or so. As usual, I used my 60mm macro, which is perhaps even better at portraits than it is for bugs. I took about ten shots in this series, and every one of them was this sharp. Click on the picture to see it full size, the details are fun.

• Camera: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi
• Lens: EF-S60mm f/2.8 Macro USM
• Shutter Speed: 1/320
• ISO: 400
• Aperture: 5.6

Post Processing: Just a bit of sharpen and contrast, and that was more out of a habit of trying to optimize than any real need.