Ann, I'll work on another version with the background darkened.
Phil, I welcome constructive criticism. I like your suggestion about squinting. My favorite version was the previous shot I posted with the background grey and the tree green. I then posted the last batch in the succession in which they were made and changed. The camera settings for this were were f/2.8. Info screen shot posted below. Don't hesitate to offer more suggestions if you think it might help.
It was shot at a pretty time of the day, although the sun was blocked from hitting that particular tree by other trees. I went back out today to take some more pictures. The weather is rather bleak and dull, so I'll have to wait for the right moment on a better day. If we could get some rain followed by a glowing sunset, that's when our tress look their best.
<http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1DyWLc0xH4CMEwPGbUmeo1y3MyCp1>