There are a plethora of ways to treat a portrait for a myriad of uses, but that is for another feature. Let's tackle adding drama or a cinematic quality to a regular, humdrum portrait. Let's even throw in a little bit of faking HDR. That way if you work on a project that requires a stunning shot without the stunning photography, you'll be able to cobble something together using your mad skillz!
Friends (whether you know them or not), are typically amateur, but that doesn't mean that they can't make excellent subjects, in fact their natural relaxation and chemistry often creates much more interesting photos.