Please visit my Tampa wedding photography and Tampa portrait photography site at http://www.boorayperry.com/.
How many steps does it take to make a great portrait? In this case, about 13.
First you take a simple portrait of three brothers.

Then, make the creative decision to convert it to black and white.
Correct the levels.
Correct the exposure
Overlay a burn.
Clean up bad spots.
Fix the light glare on the glasses.
Adjust contrast.
Adjust tint.
Adjust shadows.
Dodge and Burn
Blur background.
Sharpen.
Crop.

Now you have something worth hanging on the wall...