Joan,
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Perhaps the background should be lighter around the figure, I've seen that on some of the portraits I've studied in books and on this forum.
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Value is not arbitrary. Value is a tool you use to create a powerful composition. Once you start thinking like this, painting becomes even more fascinating! I think you might find
this thread interesting; it's Peggy Baumgaertner's lecture on massing in 3-values.
You've got a lot of potential with this reference. I like the manipulations everyone has shown. I'd still like to see more details in the light. It's a common error to have the photo push the values too far in each direction: you can't see into the darks and the lights are washed out to form-flattening white.