Surface plasmon interactions on a finite silver layer are theoretically investigated using a coupled dipole formalism. The studied system consists of several protruding particles located on the surface of the layer that are scanned with an optical probe. An optical scan-image of the silver surface is obtained by assigning the recorded far-field radiation to the momentary position of the optical probe. Both, probe and protrusions are considered as single dipolar particles. Interferences of the locally excited surface plasmons can be recorded by detecting the radiation emitted into the lower half-space at angles beyond the critical angle of total internal reflection (forbidden light). The resulting scan images show excellent agreement with recent experimental measurements. The theory of the coupled dipole formalism using Green’s functions of a layered reference system is outlined and electromagnetic properties of surface plasmons are discussed. ©1997 American Institute of Physics.