Tim,
I think the second version is better for sure! The foliage has more depth/interesting colour, and the same goes for the yellow flowers. Dropping some colour on to the tabletop also spreads some of the "good stuff" to look at, around a little bit. :)
Pulling in some colour from the background doesn't necesarilly mean changing the whole colour of the vase - hey, it's your image! But yes, as is, side by side - the second version is better.
In both versions - the tabletop is too warm of a colour (IMHO) compared to the background. (It stands out a bit too much). Your flowers and vase are the main things you want us to enjoy - the other things around it should just make it look better - encourage us to look a bit longer/more.
For backgrounds in general - if you really look at still-lifes done by amazing painters/artists - there's nothing really "random" about them. You can use the really darks (and subtle colour variations) of the background around parts of the main subject matter that you really want to make "pop"... Same goes for shadows of things sitting/and around things on a tabletop.
Tim,
There's a lot of "lip flapping here" - again, it doesn't mean I could have done it "better". :o As I have mentioned before - it's a lot easier to stand on the sidelines and point (have an opinion), than actually doing.... Both versions look good to me :) - the second one is better. :) :)
I'm not a trained artist either... My whole working life has involved carrying a really big stick to be used on coders who are "hackers" at heart. Bringing order to "chaos-that-would-be" is what I have been doing. But yes, "art" I have always enjoyed - from papier mache to over-priced oil paintings...Quote:
Tim: Not being a trained artist, I make so many fundamental mistakes that I don't even notice.
Cheers!