When I woke up early last Saturday, I rolled very slowly out of bed and said to myself, “This is fun. You do this because it’s fun.”

I looked at the clock (6am) and then looked at the outside thermometer (31 degrees F). “Fun, I thought. This is fun.”

Normally, I really don’t mind getting up early for photography, but it had been a long week and I was behind on sleep. I had set my alarm because it looked like it might be a frosty morning and I very much enjoy photographing frost-covered flowers. Now that I was up, I wasn’t as sure about that plan but since I was awake and vertical, I plowed ahead. I had time to beat the sunrise to our family prairie, but only if I kept moving.

And you know what? As soon as I got to the prairie and started walking around, I did have fun. There was a really nice frost on the ground, especially in low-lying parts of the prairie. I had a little time to scout before the sun got high enough to hit the frostiest spots, so I picked out the flowers I liked best and then waited for the light to reach them. Then I just admired the beauty and tried to capture what I could before the ice crystals melted and sunlight got too bright. Here are some of the highlights from that morning.