[Karin Wells]

This whole painting is a real attention grabber and I want to know more about it. Why this pose for this person...does it tell a story? (i.e., Juliet waiting for Romeo).

I like what you did with the sky behind the figure. It has a lot of strength and gives this an archetypical look.

Technically the railing does not explain itself and the bottom of the dress is not as believeable as the upper part.

The reference photo has the right side of the skirt "flipped up" a little. That might be a good design detail to add to break up the huge amount of endless material shown at the bottom of the painting. This is a design challenge and you need to devise something....

Also, you will need to lower the value of the "shadows" on the left side of the face. The left side of the face is in the light and you have broken up your light and made it much too dark.

Be more clear about light and shadow overall.