I've always liked portraits where a few high-key elements loom up out of large expanses of gloom. The suggested croppings destroy that and would make this image much more conventional.(posted 8814 days ago)Edward, this is a nice idea, but John K knows what he's talking about. The image doesn't suck, but it doesn't work either. If you're going to arrange bright white patches on a dark background you have to do something with them and not just rely on the tonality to generate interest.
The chair back totally overwhelms the image. That would be alright if it were part of a strong overall composition, but it isn't. The shape could be used to lead the eye round and back to Roese's face, but it doesn't connect with any of the other elements so the eye is just stopped dead in it's tracks. When I first saw it I couldn't figure out what it was (a vacuum cleaner?), so it drew my attention even more.
If this were a negative you could burn in the chair and hand, leaving Roese's face suspended in a nicely dramatic way, but it's in the wrong part of the frame so you need something where the chair is. In any case, her slightly vacant expression won't sustain interest beyond the superficial - bone structure or no. Her expression is better in the second pic, but I prefer the darker shadows of the first and in both images the casual look jars badly with the drama of your presentation.
I would second the recommendation to study and copy those who know how to handle dramatic lighting. They don't have to be the usual international big names. I find Bahman Farzad's lotus flower images inspirational in terms of composition (see the photo.net nature images forum or photocritique.net) and you could learn a lot about graphic form from the rest of his pictures (www.spotmetering.com). For something more directly similar to what you've attempted, try:
http://hem.fyristorg.com/pbackman/binde/binde1.htm
Although I'm not convinced by his "Tis flying in the face o' nature" pics, Binde is certainly someone who knows how to use black, so take a peek at his other stuff:
http://hem.fyristorg.com/pbackman/binde/tumgb.htm