Thinking about compostion

After talking to a painter friend, I decided to look more closely at the last painting I showed here. Lisa--Glowing.  My friend asked me what I really wanted to show in the painting, was it the sky, the sun shine on the water, the waves under the bench--is the figure the center of attention or all the background around her.  Upon reflection, the figure and the light around her is really what I wanted to capture. I cropped the painting  using software so I can evaluate what was going on with the composition of the  painting.

First the original painting--what do I want to be the center of interest--Lisa of course--what is taking away that attention?

First I cropped conservatively, taking out some sky, water beneath her feet and the sun streak to her left side. 

It is feeling better. Next----

I cropped the painting even more. Concentrating only on the figure not the background. Now it is looking better. The figure is the center of interest. The background around her tells a little story about where she is but does not detract from her. Now that I am looking at the painting with a critical eye, I see that the background around her shoulders is too bright and needs to recede more. the orange and pink no longer are relevant and come forward too much.

 I made this painting using a photo and unconsciously used the composition that the photographer got using his camera. Cameras record everything the lens sees. Artists are discriminating and can use only what makes the painting stronger.

Thanks to my friend, E. for his help in evaluating the painting.