zen

White posterboard works wonders for bouncing light, if you want more specular light (more harsh, with crisper shadows, say to bring out more detail in carving work) you can use posterboard or cardboard spray painted silver(some foilks use those flip out windsheild sun reflectors for cars), or for warmer tones you can use gold (used in potraiture quite a bit).

You can also use a medium grey (what photogs call 18% grey) for a backdrop,...this way when you want black all you have to do is move it far enough back that no light from the setup hits it. When you want white move it in closer and use one light soley on the backdrop. What you are in effect doing is under/overexposing respectively.
The trick to this you have to meter first then save those settings, and shoot as if the grey were going to show as grey, this way the tree is still exposed correctly.

Also one thing that will help with reflections on leaves is a polarizing filter, it cuts reflections by on ly allowing direct light waves through,...this also gives better color as there is no "light dilution".

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"Although profoundly "inconsequential," the Zen experience has consequences in the sense that it may be applied in any direction, to any conceivable human activity, and that wherever it is so applied it lends an unmistakable quality to the work."

~ Alan Watts (1915-1973)

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