It's very simple. I collected 5 leafs from a tree each in a different stage of decay. They are NOT the same leaf

Each leaf was placed on a small light box and then photographed from above.
After processing each picture in B5Pro I opened GIMP and created a blank layer.5 times the width of the canvas. Copy/pasted each leaf picture in and changed blend-mode to soft light. This made the background even white. After flattening the layers I scaled the picture back to a manageable file size.
BTW.....After some good C&C from a small photographic community of 10 photographers (I participate on) I have decided to skip the last two leafs on the right, and keep it at 3 leafs. The shape suggests they are the same leaf at 3 different stages. It still shows gradual decay, but more subtle. Thanks for your interest.
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