Wow, that's a lot of feedback so far! Thanks!
The first is just two different shots layered and blended just as Sr. Biscuit had guessed. I wanted some extremes with the main exposure's lighting so the green would pop. It was taken facing up at the sun so the blowout was intentional, but I was trying to keep it to a minimum (maybe a bit much as Linda has noted). It was really inspired by Bitter's abstract post and but I didn't want to cop his style.
The second is for day 50 of my 365. I was considering using the 50mm, but I was lacking space and had to shoot at a wider focal length (25mm). Unfortunately I was shooting these myself so I couldn't frame it perfectly, hence the asymmetry and chopped fingers. It was a very challenging shot to get right because the 50 had to look good and be placed correct (without causing too much flare), I had to set down the flash light, throw the remote in my pocket and stay in the same plane I set to focus for, all in the dark. And then wait for like 10 sec for the camera to process the shot. Was worth it though.
Thanks again for everyone's feedback! I appreciate you taking the time to do so.