This piece looks great! You can clearly see the expression and emotion of the figure. The biggest thing I am noticing is the blending and contrast. It feels like this image only has three different shades when there should be a smooth transition between shadows and highlights. I would recommend trying to carefully use a pencil to shade without the use of any kind of blending tool, and if the shading is still too dark, use an eraser to lightly lift some of the graphite off of the paper. You can use a blending tool, but you should not overdo it, because there are naturally sharp shadows that are not always blended out. The portrait looks great and have fun drawing!
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