Back lighting

                 Objects lit up by back lighting can look very beautiful and dramatic at times  like here in this section of the painting. The leaves at the top are glowing as if with their own yellow light. Its a little different than how you would usually paint dense foliage; the leaves nearest to the viewer are in deep shadow whereas the leaves behind them are lit up. Really, its the light that creates the magic, as I`m sure you have heard before. You`re walking on the side walk on a dull, cloudy day, the trees look like green-gray lifeless forms; then suddenly the clouds part, revealing the sun`s face; the leaves start glowing fiercly and little shadows are dancing about everywhere and its like you`ve stepped into paradise!

                Here are some photos, I`m not writing about the painting process itself; you know the drill….. I will probably add more shadows and fine-tune the values after I finish the rest of the painting. If you`re thinking yellow would be somewhat distracting at the top edge of the painting, I`ll just say that I hope that the yellow roses towards the left will form a downward path leading the eye towards the focal point.