Photo is more interesting when using rule of 3rd's. The creamy background makes the main element stand out. I left the leaves on the right side to balance out the image.I took this photo at 1/1250, f/6.3 with ISO 500. I also touched it up a bit in Lightroom.
In the first photo, it looks like a wide aperture was indeed used producing a blurred background not exactly creamy. I would have placed the bird looking into the blank space, not away from it.
The second photo has a nice creamy background, just what we want. Furthermore the bird is off-centered, using the rule of 3rd's and the photo is balanced with the branch on the left.