Sorry for bringing this back to life but I thought you might think this is pretty close to his look. I used someones photos from a earlier post(sorry).
before
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2371/2120734449_644418170e_o.jpg

after
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2080/2121512026_355760528d_o.jpg

before
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2057/2120734241_1b618a1744_o.jpg

after
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2214/2121512400_9cc0f34f58_o.jpg


Whoever shot/retouched this was very close to the look. I just took it a little further(with CS3 and a filter program).

I started by taking out the contrast in CS3 (the new brightness/contrast)
Add a new layer and filling it with black.

Next I brought the opacity down to whatever looked dark and hoelckie.

Adding a layer mask,I used a large brush soft and about 33% to bring a little lightness back in the skin tones.

Next step added bleach bypass from ColoreFex 3.0(great program).

Next flattened the image, made a background copy and brightened up the background layer, and then added a layer mask to the top layer, and added a little light to the skin again.

I know this is all over the place but I hope it helps...

The Newbie,
David

-David

Interesting style and facinating concept... You definitely have taken these to a new level. Thanks for sharing your workflow; appreciate the detail.

The key here -- like most projects of this nature -- is having good material to work with. Lighting really makes a difference.