By Scott Shephard
"Negative space" is a term that defines the part of a picture that is around and between the subject. In this photo the black part is the negative space.
It occurs to me that though the black seems unimportant and meaningless, it is actually what gives value and interest to this photo. The leaves are "yin" and the black is "yang" and there are some who feel that life in general is about dualities: that who we are and what we do and think are defined by opposites just like the yellow leaves are defined by the black background.
But this is a photo blog, isn't it? So I won't try to explain the possible symbolic meaning of this picture. You can do that if you are so inclined.
Canon 5DIII 1/1600s f/2.8 ISO200 100mm