Unsharp Mask. Do you use it?

Juanma · Joined: 01 Jan 2008 Posts: 257 Location: Cambrils, Spain

Hi,

I see that people over here tend to take the "purist" aproach to photography, and like photos the way they come out of the camera, or with minimal retouch.

I'd like to know if you use normally any sharpening process in the editing of your photos. May it be Photoshop's Unsharp Mask of a dedicated tool to do that.

I particularly sharpen the photos that I post here by using the "Bicubic sharpen" interpolation from Photoshop as I reduce them. No Unsharp Mask.
If I would print it, I apply some sharpening, but not too much.

What's your opinion?

Prometheus · Joined: 27 Feb 2008 Posts: 878 Location: Garphyttan, Sweden

I sharpen in GIMP och Photoshop, using any tool available and that looks good on the image (Unsharp mask, Smart sharpen, High pass etc)

I scale the images to show them on the web ofcourse. When I do that they lose sharpness. I have no doubts at all about if I should sharpen or not.

poilu · Expire: 2019-08-29

Hi Juanma,

It depends.
On the 400D the IR filter was strong and it help to unsharp 140, 0.4 if needed.
On the 40D the IR filter is better and unsharp is not needed.
I use the unsharp mask to fix focus or blur problem
If the focus and the lens is good you cannot sharp a lot without artifacts in hairs or skins.

When I resize to 800 for web, it is possible to sharp a lot without too much artifact. I use some time more to impress than because it is needed.

The "Bicubic sharpen" work sometimes but most of the times the result is too much sharp. I use normal Bicubic except if the shot is missed.

In summary when the photo is missed I use sharpening and "Bicubic sharpen" to rescue it
otherwise it is not needed except if you want to impress.

Orio · Expire: 2012-12-04

Every resolution size has it's own sharpening requirements. There is no sharpening recipe that works at all resolutions. For heavy web resize sharpening can help to recover the perception of detail that is lost because of the size reduction. For 1:1 sizes sharpening is usually required only in the small amount needed to make up for the camera's AA filter.

LucisPictor · Expire: 2013-12-03

Sometimes...

lahnet · Joined: 10 Apr 2007 Posts: 1164 Location: Denmark

I shoot RAW almost every time. That means that I have to add some sharpening manual. Normally I do it before converting into JPEG. I use CS3.

Attila · Expire: 2025-11-18

I never could sharpen any images successfully, I gave up. Olympus E-1 basic settings are very unsharp even with best lenses. I had to set more sharpening in camera, now I like the result. I had Nikon D50 and Olympus E-300 on both camera default sharpening settings is fine. Unsharp Oly was a shocking surprise.

lulalake · Expire: 2011-11-18

piticu · Joined: 04 Aug 2008 Posts: 591 Location: Romania

Nesster · Expire: 2014-02-20

I find .2 and 140+% usually works to firm up the image without artifacts. I usually feel the need for something like this.

When necessary, I also use 20-30 pix radius and <20% sharpening to help provide local contrast.

A G Photography · Joined: 11 May 2008 Posts: 1480 Location: Bologna - Italy

99% of times I use high pass because I can fine tuning it to my taste with opacity, method, masks etc. As Orio said there's no recipe, it depends heavily on the medium you need to display the image upon.
Some printers need more or less sharpening, I use Nik plugin for it as it has presets for a vast range of printers. For video it depends a lot on the subject and the lens I used, and more of all the effect I want to achieve.

Richard_D · Joined: 21 Oct 2007 Posts: 2378 Location: Faversham Kent UK

I tend to use it, but sparingly!

Attila · Expire: 2025-11-18

Laurence · Expire: 2016-06-19

I use it to rescue web size images, but not very often.

I use it quite often for getting an image ready for printing.

Rob Leslie · Joined: 20 Mar 2007 Posts: 1103 Location: UK Swindon

martinsmith99 · Expire: 2013-11-18

I shoot RAW, tweak all levels and sharpness in CS3 Bridge, open in CS3 Photoshop and do more work, dodging, burning add effects, filters and then run High Pass filter and set blending mode and opacity to suit.

But I enjoy this side as more than capturing the image and it's nothing for me to spend a few hours on one image. To hand this side over to a lab is a big no-no for me. The end result is I get the picture that I want.

This is the reason I only got into photography when it became digital. Film is not my cup of tea. As you may have guessed, I'm not a purist. Laughing

Jesito · Expire: 2015-01-07

I only sharpen the 350D RAW ones, according the CANON manual it's necessary to compensate the IR filter. The manual states the amount of sharpening on PS.

Jes.

martinsmith99 · Expire: 2013-11-18

I don't use the Canon software. I just take the image size to around 200% and check the edges.

I think the xxD range gives softer less contrasty images straight from camera than the xxxD range, as it's assumed that people with prosumer cameras will want to do some post processing.

martinsmith99 · Expire: 2013-11-18

Wow...Nice effect!

That really suits those images.

thePiRaTE!! · Joined: 31 Oct 2008 Posts: 416 Location: Canada

Its a good topic. Its nice to hear everyones philosophies and techniques.

Philosophy wise, I shoot raw with a DSLR, which in itself is basically a little computer with a program built in for rendering a digital image. Its a preset, which sometimes works to my liking, but often, not. I see photoshop as an extention of my digital photography. 'Light Room' is perhaps the most aptly named program for what it entails, along with the .DNG (digital negative) format. Its the next (and to me) necessary step to producing a final image.

Otoh, I imagine film photography would require a different train of thought.

As for technique, I use USM often on the subject of focus. I tend to generate a lot of oof area which suffers with noise if I universally process the whole image, so I lasso only the area I want to affect, copy to layer and apply USM. I zoom in and if necessary, blend the edges into the image and merge down. In the end, USM affects only small parts of the images I create if I use it, but its often used. I consider it a valuable tool in my process of creating an image.

K.

Rob Leslie · Joined: 20 Mar 2007 Posts: 1103 Location: UK Swindon

indianadinos · Expire: 2011-12-05

Hi all,

I only sharpen if required, whether it is the full size or resized image, usually with an USM of 2/0.2/0.

Best regards

hk300 · Joined: 30 Oct 2008 Posts: 1041 Location: Hong Kong

i am trying to keep post procesing to a minimum, i rather retake the photo.

However, i am really impressed by some of the photoshop possibilities!

martinsmith99 · Expire: 2013-11-18

Orio · Expire: 2012-12-04

With digital cameras, or when scanning film, sharpening is a necessary evil.
It all depends on the amount, just like parsley: a little bit of parsley will give taste to your dishes; eat a whole bowl of parsley and you will be intoxicated; eat a can of parsley, and you will be dead.

The amount of sharpening required varies with the final destination of the image, so it's impossible to give an "how much".