Personally i feel the original is quite strong, but maybe just in need of a little 'developing'. So, one little Lab curve, a wave of the wand and presto! Photoshop is both darkroom and canvas and of course a blending of the two. These days i find myself more into the development process, going for purity and emotion... but have definitely put in some years with filtering. I guess it all depends on what you are presenting your work as. Are you attempting to portray reality as seen by your eyes or are you interested in painting another picture entirely? For me the first post detracts from the beauty of the original, that being a really lovely digital capture still in need of a shove or two to get it to convey a little more emotion...

Life is so full of life. I love it when my pictures are able to portray life exactly as i remember it or even as exactly as i want to express it. Why limit yourself by rules? Infinite possiblities exist within our minds, yet so many of us still cling to the notion that expression should be contained! go figure. Anyway, hope this makes it all the more confusing...