Terry, thank you for your comments. I made some of the recommended adjustments, and I feel that this version works better than the first. When I look at both versions, I realize that the positioning of the lily pads is causing the first image to feel imbalanced compared to the second version. In the first image, my eye seems to be drawn to the intersection of the trees and sky, and the lily pads do not feel visually balanced in the image for some reason. I think it may have to do with perspective. In the second image, there appears to be a balance between the visual weight of the sky and the lily pads extending into the background.