PP sharpen vs Output sharpen

[photog1107]

I regularly sharpen in Lightroom 2.0 before I export my files. But I also have my Export set for Screen sharpening (currently on High). Am I oversharpening? What is the effective difference between these two commands?

Thanks for any insight.

[Samanax]

Originally Posted by photog1107

I regularly sharpen in Lightroom 2.0 before I export my files. But I also have my Export set for Screen sharpening (currently on High). Am I oversharpening?

Do your pictures look over-sharpened?

Originally Posted by photog1107

What is the effective difference between these two commands?

You're just sharpening the image based on where the image will be ending up. While you're making your sharpening adjustments to your image, what you see is based on what your monitor is showing you. But if you were to print the image it may look soft because what you see on your monitor isn't necessarily what you'll get in print. Even the type of paper and finish you choose for the print will affect how much sharpening you'll need to apply.

How much you sharpen an image depends on many factors...how large the image file is, how much detail is in the image, if the image has noise, if the image has been run through noise reduction, whether you've reduced the image size or increased the image size, what type of output the image is destined for, what kind of monitor you're using...these all affect what you see on the monitor and how much sharpening you apply, but the final output sharpening LR2 does is based on where the image will eventually end up. If you're going to have the image printed then LR2 will sharpen the image a lot more than if it were to just be viewed on your computer or on the web.

[photog1107]

Thanks, I believe that answers my query. Just wanted to make sure I was following a good process for the best quality. Most of the time, I am outputing to screen, but I'll make that output adjustment for print on specific printed files. Thanks!