Another go (unflattering portrait)

[payn817]

Here is another one using the same exact technique as the photo I posted yesterday. This is country music singer Jason Aldean during a concert. Thanks for looking.

[gahspidy]

payne, this one is not working. The framing is ok, but i think it would have been much more successful if he was looking up ( so his eye was shown) and if it captured with great sharpness.
With dragans effect, it seems that sharpness is an absolute must in bringing out the effect as well as a very planned and deliberate lighting setup.. Without those two things to begin with, I don't think the effect can be attempted in the first place.
Without considering the effect, your picture is not bad but just seems a bit soft.
I have been intrigued by the dragan pp for quite some time and was hoping to one day have a go. . .your rekindling the spark.

btw, i'm not sure how your approaching the effect, but you may find good results with gradient mapping.

[payn817]

Thanks for the quick and honest reply. This was my first attempt and you are absolutely correct about the lighting and sharpness. I have not attempted it with gradient mapping. He will not let his secret out without several hundred dollars and although I love his work, it is not worth the money until I can get the lighting, etc. right.

If you are interested, here's a quick rundown of what I am doing. If you try your hand and have more success, please share what you change. Thanks again.

duplicate layer
adjust shadow/highlight
flatten
set levels
duplicate layer
desaturate layer and add contrast
invert layer
gaussian blur roughly 45%
change blend mode to overlay pull opacity down
flatten
duplicate layer
burn shadows/wrinkles (midtones)
dodge highlights
dodge eyes
pull down opacity
flatten
duplicate layer
colorize (sepia tone)
change layer mode to soft light
set opacity
adjust contrast
flatten
duplicate layer
adjustments - variations - yellow/darker
set blend mode to heal
flatten
add new fill layer (black)
lower opacity (so you can see the other layer)
brush over the areas you want to show brighter (roughly 50% opacity) to paint out the black
Gaussian blur
lower opacity to desired setting
flatten

[Didache]

Thanks for the workflow .. I will also see what I can find online and have a go myself. I experiment quite a bit with layering effects, but this one is new on me! Thanks for that.

Cheers
Mike

[gahspidy]

Thanks as well, payne for the run down. gaussian blur?! i would never had thought to use that for achieving the effect. Is this something you came up with entirely yourself or was this a recipe from another source. . .
thanks again, I will fill you in if i can come up with anything giving good results..

[GB1]

Makes me long for the winter months. Good emotional capture, IMHO...

GB

[payn817]

Thanks everyone for responding.

As for the technique, it was found by doing some searching. The first gaussian blur with the invert makes a big difference, and adds a bit of glow. I didn't leave enough of the first blur in either of my posted attempts. After retrying the same photos, leaving the opacity over 60% made a noticable difference. The second blur is just to smooth the overlay.

What I am finding is that as you practice, repeating those steps and seeing how the different layers/adjustments change, the results get better. Someone with more experience with photoshop could likely blow through it with ease and get good results.

BTW, this is not Dragan's workflow as far as I know.