I was on the road at 5 o’clock this morning heading for Napa Valley.  Snow was forecast and I have never photographed the Napa vineyards under snow.  My car thermometer read 28 F. but the skies were clear and I’ve learned after years of dawn photography that even if conditions are not what I expect the odds are strongly in my favor of making good photographs.  This morning was no exception.

I passed Frog’s Leap Winery just before dawn.  This wasn’t in my plans but decided it was too good to miss so I made a quick u-turn to capture the building in the blue pre-dawn light with a single light providing the perfect contrast.

My goal was Somerston Vineyards sitting high above the valley which I thought stood the best chance of getting snow.  I was wrong.  However, the ground was covered in frost and with a new moon in the sky and pink tinged clouds from the imminent sunrise I couldn’t have been happier.

I was on the road back home by 8 pleased with the shots I had managed to capture even if the snow I had hoped for failed to materialize.  I was looking forward to coffee and a bagel and had no intention of stopping when I saw this spectacular blossom by the vineyards of Cline Cellars in Carneros.  The moral is get out early even if getting out of bed on a freezing morning is the last thing on your mind.