Carnival (Italian) Masks

The top three images were taken with  +1, 0, -1 exposures because I had very contrasting lighting.  I wanted to show the colors and details, but I couldn't get what I wanted with one shot.  I initially processed the images using Photomatix detail enhancer at the default setting.  That gave me a flat (low contrast) image with more detail.  I chose to process the image using NIK software Color FX 4.  I applied tonal contrast, glamour glow, and lighten/darken center.  With all three effects I used the default settings.  Then, I made the final adjustments in Lightroom 4, adding clarity, sharpening, vibrance, and an additional vignette.    

Here's the final image.  The additional clarity brought out more of the mid tone contrast.  I increased the  vibrance, added sharpening, and increased the vignette to draw attention to the center of the image.  

When you process your images,you will need to evaluate each image and process it differently to get the look you are after.