Foreground Shadows

As I've said many times, I look for ways to frame my focal point.  Foreground shadows are often the answer.  

In my previous post, I explained the combination of several photos to arrive at the final composition.  When I started to paint this though, I wanted to emphasize the shadowy foreground.  The mid-ground uses a spotlight effect with its light values and warmer tones.  I kept the sky and distant trees cooler and a bit darker to contrast the narrow strip of light, warm values.

All of the textures are in the foreground as well.  The sky and background trees are preserved as shapes and simple values.  Oftentimes, I see students wanting to define every leaf in the background, thus taking away the contrast in textures.  

I love trees!  More to come soon!