This image is based on the effects achieved by the "free" Amateur Painter action that can be downloaded HERE (http://homepages.slingshot.co.nz/~mikefinn/action.html). Scroll to the bottom of the page to find it.

This image is being posted as a demonstration of what's possible with Photoshop actions.

1. Ran Amateur Painter action TWICE on the original image
2. Copied unaltered version of the picture (not posted) into the image, creating a new layer.
3. Ran Glowing Edges filter (1,16,9); inverted and desaturated the result for a line drawing effect.
4. Created Levels adjustment layer and tweaked sliders to remove a lot of the midtone noise.
5. Merged Levels and Glowing Edges layers.
6. Set Glowing Edges layer blend mode to Multiply; adjusted opacity to give the image a little more detail.
7. Ran Crosshatch filter (9,10,1) against the Glowing Edges layer for a more sketchy look.
8. Flattened image.
9. Applied Texturizer filter (PS7 texture preset: "Rust Flakes") to give the image a little more texture. Scaling 50, Relief 4.

With thanks to David for the inspiration, I hope this gives your new found sport a shove in a positive direction.

~DannyR~

The "painting" is based on this image.

Great link Danny. That looks like something even I can play with. Thanks for the info.
Deb

Don't do this to me, you know I go to school all day on Wed and come home to relax, and then there is another great effect to try.
Anyway, I tried this on my Dads pic, he has had a stroke and it really shows on photos but this effect really hides it. I like what it did to the hat. The pic had already had the median action run on it.

http://www.pbase.com/image/6575167

[Link edited so it would resolve - DannyR]