Leaves - Oil Painting in Progress

This weekend I decided to accept the gallery's challenge to create a painting centered in some way on Mother Earth for Earth Day.

I found a photo of the sunlight peeking through foilage, and really liked the color variances induced by the sun's rays. Some of the leaves seem opaque, while others are almost translucent. I am about half way toward completion. I really want to lighten part of the background and work on leaf details a little bit. Still intend to keep a fresh look, however, so I don't want to blend too much.

Hopefully, I will post the finished painting tomorrow. Please stay tuned...