A little out of season, but still timeless and elegant. Ice tinged edges of a glorious holly bush. I went a little further with this image, and changed it to B&W, then used a history brush to bring back some of the color... less is always more.

Sometimes getting that perfect image is simply dependent upon the luck of timing. Being there at the right moment, prepared to capture it. I was up early to see my son off to the school bus and knew that while it had been cold enough to freeze the evening before, I was not expecting to find what I did that morning! In the quiet of early morning, we were presented with a crystal wonderland... these little ice whiskers had grown on the branches, the basketball hoop, EVERYWHERE - and they were glorious.

Later on, after a little research, I learned that this type of frost is called Hoar Frost and when it occurs, it presents the most magnificent scenarios... I was just lucky enough to happen upon it at the right moment, ready to capture it with my camera.

In the chill of the early morning where shadows are long and cold, the first sign that summer, was in fact, coming to a close is evident.

The sunlight and shadows that play upon this solitary leaf reveal its inner structure, while a fringe of ice crystals define the edges.

Without the sunlight "allowing" the glimpse into the inner workings - this would be any other ordinary cold and very solitary leaf...

If one were able to describe quiet with a picture - this would be it. Taken only with available light... from the moon and a streetlight off in the distance it is surely one of my very favorite shots.

This image owes its life to the 'night vision imaging' capability of the Sony Cybershot DSC-F707. I absolutely love this camera, and while its resolution maxes out at 5 megapixels - it is what I grab as I reach right by my Canon Rebel Xti 10 megapixel.

This amazing camera has a Carl Zeiss lens and can very easily photograph the most minute detail (I do confess - I use it most often for macro photography...) while also mastering a night shot AND serving to entertain the dogs with the IR beam it shoots out to focus in the dark. Love it!