Wrapped in four layers and armed with a drone, a Chicago Sun-Times photojournalist braved the brutal temps to capture delicate pancake ice swirling beneath the cold gaze of Chicago's skyline.

Chicago faces a cold week with potential snowfall, including up to 6 inches from lake-effect snow by the week's end.

A quiet, dry day is in store for the Chicago area Thursday, but things will start to change overnight as lake effect snow begins to build in western Michigan, leading to a “prolonged” period of snow for northeast Illinois and northwest Indiana Friday and Saturday.