Hey Sevcat,
Yes! These images are much better. Nature is inherently complex and chaotic. I have a feeling that why we love being in nature. The complexity is so overwhelming that it’s simple. If that makes any sense. 😳
In your first and last image you’ve done a nice job of cropping out everything except what interesting. The first image is by far the strongest and it certainly shows that you’ve understood the assignment. Reflections are fantastic for photography. Always shoot reflections if they are available. Even if they don’t look that great in person you may enjoy them after the fact. This month’s photo contest is about reflections.
Look at these two images. They would be nothing without reflections:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/51363021@N08/6295120633
http://www.flickr.com/photos/32567471@N05/6292226621
Now the lesson here is to try to crop out everything that isn’t interesting. Most of the time the best way to to do this is to move your feet.
It’s one of those things you should ask yourself when you are shooting. “is there stuff in the frame that shouldn’t be there” or “how can i organize this frame in a way that is less chaotic”.
Nice job here. See you on the next assignment.