Grandma Hicks
 

This is a portrait I did of my grandmother, who incidentally will be 100 years old this year. :-) It's 20 x 16, oil on canvas. I was unable to find the image I manipulated to remove my brother and nephew and straighten her collar for reference, but here is the original.

This execution takes some years off the subject, with soft modeling and a pleasant,

Value changes
 

Thanks so much, Steven. I appreciate all the thought you've put into this critique. I opened the image in Photoshop and experimented with the changes you recommend, with quite satisfactory results. The most important thing is what I've learned from your taking the time to explain this to me - I can't thank you enough.