I started with an image of a statue of Abraham Lincoln that I took in a park here in Boise.  It was a sunny day and I took the picture head-on.  I like the picture, however, one side of his face is clear and the other is in the shadows.  To improve this I created a new layer and made it a smart object.  I then used the levels adjustment layer and set the images so the dark side of his face was clear.  The rest of his face was too light.  I then inverted the mask so his face was dark again.  Then I used a soft brush with a lower opacity and painted his face around the eyes and anywhere it was too dark.  Once I achieved the look I liked I sharpened the image a bit with the Smart Sharpen, I used these settings – Amount 25%, Radius 2.0 px, Remove Len Blur and ticked More Accurate.  I like how this image came out.  The effect is subtle but effective.

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