To sharpen or not to sharpen?

[JodyGall]

Ok, I found a little about the Unsharp Mask. So far, the recommended settings I've found for pictures of people is this:
Amount 150%, Radius 1, Threshold 10
Does that sound about right? I'm still kinda unclear about what Threshold actually is. But I've tried it on a couple pictures and it does make a huge difference! Now on to find out what a high-pass filter is....

[JodyGall]

Ok, I now found the high pass filter! Holy cow! what a difference! My default on PS3 was set to a radius of 10 pixels. What radius setting do most of you use?

[Mr Guy]

I have no idea, I use the DIY method I think Wulf posted using grain extract and overlay layers!

[JodyGall]

I've been playing around this morning with both of these. And I have to say, I think I'm partial to the Unsharp Mask. Its more subtle, but yet makes a huge difference. But I'm going to keep messing with settings on both and see what I end up liking over time!

[Aperture Nine]

There are many, many types of sharpening. Read some books written by pro's and then try and try and try. If you are working with the JPGs from your camera perhaps you should start working with the camera settings. Perhaps in the in-camera sharpening is all you need. If you are working with RAW files, then sharpening is essential. RAW files are not sharpened at ALL by the camera.

I have many sharpening actions in Photoshop, but now I just use unsharp mask using my experience and knowledge. All the reading and trying out paid off.

Sharpen on a duplicate layer and perhaps use a vector mask, then you can sharpen just parts of the image.

There is soft sharpening for portraits, edge sharpening, sharpening for landscapes etc. etc. Some sharpening you can apply twice, some use presharpening. It is impossibe to give you good general advice.

In The Adobe Photoshop CS3 Book Scott Kelby shows how to begin sharpening and his suggested unsharp settings are not bad at all. He also describes different types of sharpening.

But again, get some Photoshop books at the library (even if you don't use Photoshop).

I stopped using Smart Sharpening it is too slow, and I am very pleased with the results I get using unsharp mask.

[BEphoto]

another question to throw in. how do you guys setup sharpness/contrast in-camera? leave it at +/-0 and sharpen later or bump each one in your camera menu before shooting? Ive gotten to where i keep the camera side at a neutral 0 and sharpen in PS.

Ive never really paid attention but how much of a difference does going on the + side of the scales make?

[JodyGall]

Originally Posted by Aperture Nine

If you are working with RAW files, then sharpening is essential. RAW files are not sharpened at ALL by the camera.

I didn't know this. Thanks! I just started shooting totally in RAW about 2 months ago. I have a feeling my pictures are going to step up a notch here in the next couple months. Woohoo! Thanks everyone for all your input. I will definitely be doing some more research on all this. Thanks so much!

Oh, and yep, I have Photoshop CS3.

[Saralonde]

Here's Wulf's thread on high pass.

[Saralonde]

Scott Kelby's recommendations for unsharp mask:
1. People: Amt. 150%, Rad. 1, Thres. 1
2. Cityscapes, urban or travel: Amt. 65%, Rad. 3, Thres. 2
3. General: Amt. 85%, Rad. 1, Thres. 4

These seem to be a good place to start from, but like anything it depends on the image and the effect you want to achieve.

[Aperture Nine]

There is also interesting chapters about sharpening and much more in

SKIN
The complete guide to digitally lighting, photographing and retouching faces and bodies

by Lee Varis

Got mine from the library. Read as much as you can, Scott Kelby has a few good general tips, but every author has his/hers special technique that you can learn a lot from.

You could possibly also benefit from:
Scott Kelby's 7-Point System for Adobe Photoshop CS3

Thats not just about sharpening, but about a suggested work flow when retouching images. Don't see the 7-point system as rules but as inspiration. Unfortunately I bought after using years on developing my own similar work flow, so I wish I could have cut a few corners with a book like this early in my learning process.

Have fun.