Angelina

[Mike Sibley]

My first thought has nothing to do with your drawing itself, but... don't draw right up to the edge of your paper. You cannot mat or frame this drawing without cropping parts of it from view. Also, at some point during the drawing, you might realise that it needs to be extended. For example, if you decided that an "offset to the left" position would look better for the head in this drawing, you need spare paper around it in order to do that.

As for your drawing... it's got a lot of good things going on. You have an interesting background that doesn't vie for attention with the head. I rather like the slant of the head, too. It's slightly unexpected, yet it appears to be entirely natural. The face had excellent form and proportion. And the hair looks hairy.

Actually, the hair, which looks a little dry and coarse, requires some rethinking, but it serves its purpose. That'll improve in time, and it's more than adequate for a "first finished drawing". Just keep drawing and you'll naturally improve.

Just to return to the background for a moment... it's not vitally important, but I don't know what it is. That could be a stone wall top-left? And water top-right? Possibly a beach behind her? Whatever it is, it balances the head very well, but I am left wondering what I'm looking at.

[Mike Sibley]

Now I understand! Thanks!

I saw the background as receding - so, a beach or similar, and the sky as sea. I think that's because of the light values you chose.

Less or, preferably, no white within the rock would have helped, as they don't naturally contain white - but a sandy beach might.

Top-loading would help too. Notice in your reference that the rocks become darker with height. Because we expect flat scenes to lighten with distance, presenting the opposite, might make your background look more vertical.