Zou
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/02/2007
Posts: 2031
Loc: Edinburgh
|
|
Coming from a position of quite anti-editing, I have traditionally been quite a reluctant sharpener. I find USM to be mostly horrible. Lightroom's clarity feature worked nicely though, and I have recently been looking at high pass filters and the like, and have been surprised by how effective and localised it can be (I generally don't like visibly oversharpened images). There's definitely something to it, and I'm keen to expand my skills.
What are you using, and do you know any decent tutorials to get me started?
--------------------
Zou's Flickr Page
|
Malcolm_Stewart
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 11/07/2005
Posts: 2249
Loc: Milton Keynes, UK
|
|
Photoshop's USM, with parameters set to 200, 0.6, 4;
or 250, 0.3, 4 for sharpening before printing*.
Occasionally I'll use parameters of 30,60,0 for removing "haze" before I do any other adjustments. I found this very useful with a series of shots taken over open countryside when I hadn't realised just how hazy it was.
*I'm careful to check for haloes at 100% view before printing, which is normally to A4, A5 or to A3+.
If I don't like the effect I'll always undo, or step backwards and start again.
--------------------
Malcolm Stewart
|
beejaybee
Marvin
Reged: 18/07/2007
Posts: 4245
Loc: Really Here In Name Only
|
|
Quote:
do you know any decent tutorials to get me started?
I prefer wavelet sharpening to unsharp mask - I take it that's what you mean by "high pass filters and the like".
The only treatment I've ever found that adequately explains the theory behind sharpening is in "The Handbook of Astronomical Image Processing". It's not easy going though.
|
Overread
addict
Reged: 17/01/2008
Posts: 578
Loc: UK; Suffolk
|
|
Generally I use unsharpen mask - first value varies depending on the photo in editing - radius set to 0.8 and threshold set to 2
Generally based on these two links of info:
websharpening
Sharpening info
there is also a lot of other info on the bigelow site - worth reading
--------------------
My photography blog
http://overread.wordpress.com
|
Bettina
Kein Titel
Reged: 12/02/2004
Posts: 4002
Loc: London
|
|
Occasionally, I sharpen the Lightness channel in Lab mode (and then revert back to RGB) - 300/0.3/0 - but only if I have to.
--------------------
Bettina
http://www.vibrantpictures.co.uk
Vibrant Pictures on Flickr
|
LargeFormat
old hand
Reged: 24/10/2006
Posts: 979
Loc: Buckinghamshire and Cumbria
|
|
For bulk stuff I use DxO but what sharpening technology it uses I just don't know. Does anyone out there?
|
Monobod
'Phantom' of the forum!
Reged: 03/04/2003
Posts: 5672
Loc: Just West of Norwich, Norfolk
|
|
Once again, I refer you all to an excellent book by Bruce Fraser called 'Real World Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop CS2'. ISBN 0-321-44991-6.
This 272 page book is devoted entirely to the subject of image sharpening and goes into the subject in emense detail. It is a slog to read it all, but at the end you will have a thorough understanding of the subject. There are examples of workflow for sharpening images from various sources and for various output devices. These can be recorded as 'Actions' and applied easily with full control over settings. The difference these workflows make to the final result is truely superb. You will not need anything else, I assure you.
--------------------
David.
-----------------------------------------------
Photos hosted by Flickr.
www.flickr.com/photos/monobod/
-----------------------------------------------
I see the world thro' a viewfinder, but the world watches me via CCTV!
|
Zou
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/02/2007
Posts: 2031
Loc: Edinburgh
|
|
I've read some excerpts online and it does look useful. I only have PSE6 and Gimp, so I fear his advice may not be totally transferable, as certain features are not shared between the programs.
--------------------
Zou's Flickr Page
|
davidh
addict
Reged: 08/11/2005
Posts: 547
Loc: Bristol + Farnham
|
|
Quote:
For bulk stuff I use DxO but what sharpening technology it uses I just don't know. Does anyone out there?
DxO can do USM sharpening, but with the right lens/camera modules, it can also do its own 'special' sharpening...
--------------------
David
|
Overread
addict
Reged: 17/01/2008
Posts: 578
Loc: UK; Suffolk
|
|
thanks for the book recommendation Monobod
regardless for the lack of software, a deeper understanding of just what you are doing and how to get good results is a good step forward - besides the actions there is quite a bit elements can do - and some people know how to trick it to do things that the full version can also do.
--------------------
My photography blog
http://overread.wordpress.com
|
Monobod
'Phantom' of the forum!
Reged: 03/04/2003
Posts: 5672
Loc: Just West of Norwich, Norfolk
|
|
Quote:
thanks for the book recommendation Monobod
regardless for the lack of software, a deeper understanding of just what you are doing and how to get good results is a good step forward - besides the actions there is quite a bit elements can do - and some people know how to trick it to do things that the full version can also do.
Yes, this book covers so many aspects of the subject that it is worth buying for the insight it gives into the whole subject and from Amazon, it is only about £17. Not a lot of dosh when you consider what can be paid for tutorials these days. I am sure that a lot of what is discussed can be done with PE6.
--------------------
David.
-----------------------------------------------
Photos hosted by Flickr.
www.flickr.com/photos/monobod/
-----------------------------------------------
I see the world thro' a viewfinder, but the world watches me via CCTV!
|
Previous
Index
Next
Threaded
Edit
Reply
Quote
