Snow flower

An early snow fell during the nighttime hours on Nov. 12. By noon the next day, temperatures had risen above freezing and the half-inch snowfall had mostly melted away. Opportunities to capture a photo like the one you see here are often fleeting.

I got out early that morning and was delighted to see snow and no wind. Although the light was dim, I had no trouble searching for things to photograph. I spent too much time taking pictures of snow on green leaves, but I knew where some yellow coneflowers had been blooming this past summer. I went there.

Knowing that coneflower stems die and the seed heads do not fall off the plant after blooming gave me a hint as to what I might find. Several seed heads with snow on them gave me the chance to find one that was standing alone without grass or other plants interfering. I placed a dark gray backdrop behind the dead flower and carefully took this photo.