Cute girl, nice outfit, good lighting, great setting (I see blue water in the background) so why ruin it with that black pole? For me the pole does absolutely nothing to enhance the image or relate to the model or scene in any way. Hopefully you got some frames without the ugly, distracting pole?
There's much I like about the first. I don't mind the pole, but the lower portion doesn't add to the image. Something like a square crop of the top could have more impact. Assuming the color space is RGB, I'd add a little yellow to the color balance and smooth her skin. I can illustrate the suggestions if you'd like.
The second isn't as strong, to my eyes, although I like the use of DOF. Something white off to her left would help fill in the shadow on the left side of her face. The placement of the horizon atop her shoulders is unfortunate. Also, to pose with her body leaning to one side while her head tips to the opposite direction is generally not a flattering pose. For reasons I can only speculate, it's a common pose when the subject positions herself, but it's by and large not a very appealing one.
I agree about the skin smoothing, I am learning this technique and hopefully can apply it to my future processing. Will the yellow help with my model's sunburn that was making my processing more of a challenge than usual?
