Need layout advice

[Aquariophile]

Hi everyone, first post here.

So basically I'm trying to improve my tank, which has a pretty bad layout at the moment, mainly due to, say, laziness in maintenance mostly, so I'm trying to change that.
My tank is a 33gal or 120 liters long, so I went with three dragon stones with rotala h'ra in the back, a monte carlo ''carpet'', and repens with a contrast of black gravel and sand on the right, However, the substrates mixed for obvious reasons so it doesn't look great, I've attached this picture so you can see for yourself.
So I had two ideas in mind, the first one, more expensive, overall harder, but also a bit more fun to do :

That would be my first choice as it would create a nice shaded environment (with floating plants too) for my pearl gouramis as well, but I'm concerned for the balance in the overall look, between the left and right side. Also, I'm not sure I'd have the space, even though I can make the rocks closer together, I would probably be able to get a square of about 35x30 cm for the design.
The second design I had in mind is going with the first idea I had making this tank and trying to fix the problem where the substrates mix, by putting rocks at the limit, but I'm not sure it would look super natural and it wouldn't create many hiding spots on the right side for my fish.
Also thinking about putting some Alternanthera reineckii mini between the dragon stones, since my lighting is not very strong, if you have any idea about how to compensate for the lighting let me know (iron supplements ?).
So I was wondering if the first design seems like a reasonable idea or if the safer, second option would be a wiser option.
Thanks in advance

 

[Sunnyspots]

Hello. I'm not quite sure what you mean when discussing the 2 options for layout, but I thought I'd suggest that adding CO2 might help your Alternanthera, although it might make little difference without sufficient light. It could be worth a try. However, it will probably alter your pH and KH so those should be monitored. I hope that is a little helpful.

 

[Byron]

I think the first photo is a very good beginning. In my view, it just needs to b continued/extended to the right side of the tank, with the slope, by adding a couple more chunks of rock. Given the soft water fish species, a chunk or two or three of wood placed on the substrate and supported by the rockwork, or standing replicating tree trunks, depending what you can find in wood.

Maintain a uniform upper (top level) substrate, it always looks more "natural".

EDIT. Sunnyspots post as I was typing has reminded me of the plant question...light drives photosynthesis, and this involves intensity and spectrum. Red leaf plants reflect red light, and red light is also primary for photosynthesis (second is blue, third green) so red leaf plants need more light per say. Additional nutrients including CO2 with insufficient light only feed algae if the other plants can't use them. Assuming the light is good spectrum (in the 5000K to 6500K range) then stay with plants that are happy with this intensity. You should however get some substantial floating plants, especially for gourami, and the tetras will shine more too.