Taking leaves off does not improve bud development. Removing what produces the sugar that powers such things is not a benefit.
read the "to defioiate or not.." post on cocoforcannabis to understand why that's not a good idea in greater detail.
apical dominance and light penetration dictate the depth of good buds before it turns larfy... not direct light on the buds. ATP is highly mobile. Access is not a problem. Apical dominance is the reason why buds that are higher (vertically) will take the lion's share of resources.
i've purpsefully left leaves directyl over and even touching buds to heavily shield them... those bud sites look exactly like any other equivalent bud site at same level on plant.. consistently, repeatedly... i guarantee the people that say the opposite never compared results to a control group and jsut repeating an urban myth.. like the absolute need to flush a plant at end of life -- such a behaviour is only needed when you have overfed and caused a toxic substrate.