AbstractNear‐field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM) has been used to generate high resolution fluorescence images of cytoskeletal actin within fixed mouse fibroblast cells. Comparison with other microscopic methods indicates a transverse resolution well beyond that of confocal microscopy, and contrast far more revealing than in force microscopy. Effects unique to the near field are shown to be involved in the excitation of fluorescence, yet the resulting images remain readily interpretable. As an initial demonstration of its utility, the technique is used to analyse the actin‐based cytoskeletal structure between stress fibers and in cellular protrusions formed in the process of wound heal