First Set of 400D Shots - Beach at Night

Hey everyone,

I found this forum a few weeks back when I got a very big surprise gift of a 400D and realized I had much to learn. I've gotten quite a bit out of reading everybody's comments, and I'm impressed with the quality of both the photos and the information available.

I took myself (and the Rebel) down to the beach last night, and took some shots with a mini-tripod set on top of my truck roof. Here's the result. I would really love some criticism on these. All my friends just say "Yeah, those are good" when I know they could be better. I know I've taken better shots with my old Fuji FinePix. I learn a lot from reading people's takes on some of the posted shots, so I'm hoping some of the more experienced among you will be kind enough to tell me what you see and don't see.

First one:

Second:

The EXIF data is viewable if you look in the galleries at http://www.two-olive.com/photos/balboa

I'm really looking forward to your feedback so I continue to grow.

Daniel