I was in the woods recently after the rain. The rain soaked trees were black making them really stand out against the overcast sky.
For this piece I started with the board upside down so I could control the brush stokes to create the fade. I found it was easier to evenly stroke down the surface. I built up the layers of tone with paint first then flipped the board to the correct way round to add the detail.
I think the fade works really well and even thought I have titled dark woods its actually flooded with light.