Been editing my final image a bit more, trying to get the shading right, especially on the wires. I feel happy with the end photo i chose to use as i think that it not only encapsulates the theme of the project but also shows my own skills and workings in relation to Photoshop .

I've been working a lot recently on the closed eyes photograph, mainly concentrating on developing the veins on the arm through paint brush tool alongside brightness and contrast on the overall image. The choice to stick to editing this image rather than the others was mainly due to the positioning of the eyes and the impact this had upon drawing attention to certain areas within the photograph. I also felt that it worked better in partnership with the overall theme, expressing what i wanted. Overall i did feel happy with the image shown but did begin to find myself wanting to work more within photoshop developing the image future as i  felt that i had not really explored and experimented with it properly. This is where i got the idea of adding more wires, adapting and working from the original image rather than taking and replacing elements . The first idea was to possibly add wires, working on the background of the image recreating stacks of empty electrical objects working in comparisont to the foreground image. The only problem i found when i began doing this was that the wires didn't look as good as i wanted as because of using cloning they seemed to result in having a fake and unnatural look to them with obvious editing effects. Looking unnaturally placed remving the initial effect of a dark and dingy background.

After this and wanting to adapt from my original but on a more exaggerated level i thought about using my original as more of a template something which didn't need to be edited to a large degree. The four wires seen puertuding from the large white wire and entering the arm was the result of this. I wanted to choose something upon the image and work from it rather than adding things too it or removing things away. To do this i firstly began by taking and using an image off google (Shown here) to which i then cut, removed, copied and reworked on top of my original. The process involved me using alot of the paint brush tool and patch tool as i needed to create a softness and airbrushed effect to the wires working on the lighting and colors to ensure they looked part of the original image. The positing of the wires was also another important factor within the work as i wanted it look as though they were entering the skin on the arm. This lead me onto having to move and alter the original size,shape and angles of the wires in relation to this through th transform and puppet warp tool.

Overall i feel happy with this addition to the photograph as i feel that it adds more of a dramatic and effective element as well as creating a clearer understanding of my overall theme and what i wanted to portray, alongside displaying more of my photoshop skills and leanings. Due to this i don't think i will be adding any more to the photo as i think doing so has helped me recognize the limit of where my work could possibly look over edited, something which i don't want.

Other image with eyes closed, do prefer this one as due to the positioning of the eyes looking down it seems to draw more attention to the area of the needle. 

Needs
Wire making brighter
Maybe change background?
more work on skin
Add logo somewhere?

Glow?

I began experimenting with adding things such as a glowing effect to my image, wanting to experiment more with electrical or robot like effects. Here you can see that i have added a low blueish glow on the veins to which continues on the side of the face. The main purpose of this was to symbolize what was being injected into the human, making it visible through the skin similar to that of blood. I felt by doing this that it future raised the question of control and power while blurring the lines between human and cyborg as it allows the viewer to question to what point does a human become a cyborg? and what makes them become one if they are?. I also feel that by doing this it better highlighted the main focal point of the image, helping the viewer understand more about my idea.

Personally i didn't really like this effect as i found that it created a very edited and altered look to the image removing the naturalness previously created. I think that when viewed closer it again looses its naturalness as the veins appear blurred while the colors create a more drawn-on look to which again aids in the loss of realistic features. I do like the idea and the effects that using glow has on the image but overall i felt that it created a much more unrealistic effect to which i felt didn't compliment the rest of the image as a whole.

Look into photographs or artists which use wires or drugs within their work/ or photo manipulation. Or who work with skin??

Main Photoshop tools used:

Patch tool
Paint brush
Spot healing