Hey, Alex
Hope you don't mind our using your bandwdith for this(We have to show more of this to lure Alex into this yet another addiction), but to answer your question, Wingo:
Certainly, this style of aquascaping has existed before - but Takashi Amano is a professional photographer who has propelled this 'look' to the prominence it enjoys now. He became an aquarist after he started photographing aquascapes.
So, through reading and surfing, what I find now are three types of planted freshwater tanks: biotopes, Dutch (very formal, very garden-like)(this could be interesting and I believe many readers will be interested in som epics), and Amano-style.
The second photo is not one of his tanks, but was created by George and Steven Lo of Aqua Forest Aquarium in San Francisco. I find it amazing - I think the only plants being used are Java Fern (Java Moss you mean) (tree and the road) and some hairgrass:scratchch. Of course, they are followers of Amano's and sell his Amano Design stuff.