BEAUTIFUL FEATHERS MAKE BEAUTIFUL FLIGHTS HAPPEN NOW

The art and science of feathers, as explored by two photographers, Robert Clark and Waldo Nell, are featured in this BN Daily Fix. Check out their amazing and diverse points of view below.

Feathers are beautiful. That’s pretty much a universal truth. Whether you’re talking about the way they look, how they aid flight, how they keep things soft, fluffy and warm, they are simply, magnificent.

Award-winning photographer Robert Clark is fascinated by feathers and has given us a chance to see them in their glory from the perspective of their evolutionary paths.

In fact, feathers were integral to Darwin’s early work in exploring the theory of evolution. Feathers can be traced back, 200 million years, to their dinosaur origins.

Clark’s recent book, “Feathers: Displays of Brilliant Plumage,” lays out the story of feathers. Clark’s stunning photos are amplified and contextualized brilliantly with text by science writer Carl Zimmer.

"Art meets science in a poetic celebration of Earth's astonishing diversity. ‘Feathers’ is an intensely beautiful visual taxonomy and a photographic love letter to this poetic feat of evolution." -- Brain Pickings

Zimmer calls feathers an “accident of physics.” Beyond their mechanical function, they are amazing in their diversity -- not only in the most obvious variety of colors, but also in their specialized shapes and functions.

The lesser snow goose has two color phases: a dark (blue) plumage and a white (snow) plumage.

Penguins have tiny feathers on their wings that are designed to keep them both warm and agile in their frozen Antarctic home.  

Owl feathers aim to muffle the sound of their flight so they are undetected by their prey.

The superb starling (Lamprotornis superbus) has bright green wing feathers. The color is structural, produced by microscopically structured surfaces that interfere with and scatter visible light. 

Some feathers produce “music” when they move through air. The Club-winged Manakin’s feathers sound like a violin.

See more of Clark’s gorgeous feather photos on his site and in his featured stories for National Geographic.

WALDO NELL

Photographer Waldo Nell sees deep beauty in feathers, far beyond what we see. He  uses a microscope to see the building blocks that give feathers their color, texture, form, and function.

Most people look at male peacocks, for example, and can easily see their exquisite feathers, whether they are fanned out, demanding attention from potential mates, or they relaxed and smoothly sweeping across the lawn during a morning stroll. But Nell knows there’s more.

He’s not only found additional levels of beauty in feathers, he’s mastered the ability to produce astonishingly beautiful images of his findings. Nell’s photos are composites of hundreds of images.

Nell’s peacock feather series feels otherworldly, yet knowing that they are of mere Earth creatures, it makes them even more amazing.

See more of Nell’s macrophotography gems here.

Read more about Beautiful Flights in Beauty From a Drones-Eye View.

And check out more beautiful things happening now in BN Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact Daily Fix posts.

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IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: by Robert Clark. “Birds.” Flamingo.
2. Image: by Robert Clark. “Grey Peacock-Pheasant Feather.”
3. Image: by Robert Clark. “Male Red Bird of Paradise Tail Feathers.”
4. Image: by Robert Clark. “Common Ringneck Pheasant Feathers.”
5. Image: by Robert Clark. Courtesy of Chronicle Books. “Feathers: Displays of Brilliant Plumage.”
6. Image: by Robert Clark. “Blue-Fronted Amazon Feather.”
7. Image: by Robert Clark. From left to right: “Spotted Eagle-Owl Down feather, King Bird-of-Paradise Tail Wire, Superb Lyrebird Tail Feather.”
8. Image: by Robert Clark. “The Lesser Snow Goose Feathers.”
9. Image: by Robert Clark. ”The Superb Starling’s Wing Feathers.”
10. Image: by Robert Clark. “Wilson's Bird of Paradise Feather.”
11. Image: by Waldo Nell. “Peacock Feather Series.”
12. Image: by Waldo Nell. “Peacock Feather Series.”
13. Image: by Waldo Nell. “Peacock Feather Series.”
14. Image: by Waldo Nell. “Peacock Feather Series.”
15. Image: by Robert Clark. “Red-Crested Turaco Feather.”
16. Image: by Robert Clark. “Junglefowl Feathers.”
17. Image: by BN App - Download now!
18. Image: by Robert Clark. “The Cassowary.”