I have mixed feelings about this edit; on one hand, the clouds and bg do look nice darkened...on the other hand, you really washed out a lot of nice shading you had in his face.

Are you messing with Contrast/Brightness? If so, you might want to, instead, look for a tool called "Levels" or "Tone Adjust" ... this can darken things without affecting the highlights.

If you really wanted (but you might not, it's all up to you), I could do a quick paintover for you to show you, for next time, on how I'd make things look brighter and more exciting for this pic. But it's all up to you. If you want to, email me the first version of this pic (small, like your web-version).

In other news, I like your cloud and stonework, and the hand holding the staff is done pretty well!

my art: www.side7.com/art/daniwill