432

The gradations of shade and colour in leaves.

The willow and other similar trees, which have their boughs lopped every 3 or 4 years, put forth very straight branches, and their shadow is about the middle where these boughs spring; and towards the extreme ends they cast but little shade from having small leaves and few and slender branches. Hence the boughs which rise towards the sky will have but little shade and little relief; and the branches which are at an angle from the horizon, downwards, spring from the dark part of the shadow and grow thinner by degrees up to their ends, and these will be in strong relief, being in gradations of light against a background of shadow.

That tree will have the least shadow which has the fewest branches and few leaves.

Taken from The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci edited by Jean Paul Richter, 1880.

VII * X
Notebooks of Leonoardo da Vinci
VIII: Botany for Painters and Elements of Landscape Painting.
. . .
The insertion of the leaves.
412,
413,
414,
415,
416,
417,
418,
419
Light on branches and leaves.
420,
421,
422
The proportions of light and shade in a leaf.
423,
424,
425,
426
Of the transparency of leaves.
427,
428,
429
The gradations of shade and colour in leaves.
430,
431,
432,
433,
434
A classification of trees according to their colours.
435
The proportions of light and shade in trees.
436,
437,
438,
439,
440
of the spectator.
441,
442,
443
The effects of morning light.
444,
445,
446,
447,
448
The effects of midday light.
449
The appearance of trees in the distance.
450,
451
The cast shadow of trees.
452
. . .