The Best Image I’ve Ever Created…?

The final image is is quite unlike the scene which I photographed.
It is, however, very close to the image I had in my head when I found the composition.

I chose the composition on that dull, misty morning in late autumn and decided that I wanted the warm yellow leaves to stand out in complimentary contrast to the dark, ruddy-brown dead bracken. I wanted a somber, muted overall tone to the colours with the saturation dialed down in the greens. I needed the path to lead the viewers eye into the image, squeezing through the gap between the trees. The mist creates separation between the fine branches and the dark background. My favorite element is the scattering of yellow leaves on the grass in the foreground looking like gold coins carelessly spilled and tempting you forward.