fixing jagged edges

[mapgirl]

Sorry, but I don't know how else to describe it. In this shot you can see tiny, jagged edges--teeth-like--along the seed coming out of the flower. Which post proc. technique can I use to minimize them? I use PhotoShop Elements 7.0

Thank you!

P.S. After looking at the Preview of this post, I see that it's not so apparent here. But, trust me, they're there.



Camera: Canon Rebel XTi
Lens: 17-85
ISO: 800 (I know, it's bound to have issues, but the light was low and a breeze was blowing)
Exposure: 1/320 sec
F-stop: f/5.60
Focal length: 85mm

[OsmosisStudios]

A 100% crop of the issue would help. Or a link to a full-size.

[mapgirl]

Originally Posted by OsmosisStudios

A 100% crop of the issue would help. Or a link to a full-size.

I noticed this before, but blowing up the cropped area makes it even harder to see. But maybe what I'm seeing is the tiny, intermittent dark outline around the seed pod? This same cropped, resized photo on my computer screen in Photoshop looks like tiny bites have been taken out of the pod. Now I'm more confused.

[OsmosisStudios]

That's noise from shooting at 800iso.

The noise amplifies the difference in colour between the two. This would be especially prevalent if this is a JPG from the camera, as it would apply a slightly more aggressive sharpening curve.

Solution: no more iso800

[mapgirl]

Originally Posted by OsmosisStudios

That's noise from shooting at 800iso.

The noise amplifies the difference in colour between the two. This would be especially prevalent if this is a JPG from the camera, as it would apply a slightly more aggressive sharpening curve.

Solution: no more iso800

I shot it in RAW, but I'm new to working with that. Other than shooting at a lower ISO (not always feasible in the forest), what can I do when I process in RAW (or after) that would soften those edges without losing the details I want to keep?

Thank you again for the help!

[OsmosisStudios]

Most noise reduction will eventually soften the edges. Unfortunately, other than deliberately using a blur tool, youre kinda stuck.

[dcclark]

It also looks like the camera applied a bit much sharpening there, as well (or perhaps you sharpened it in post-processing). You can turn down your camera's sharpening a bit in its settings.

However, unless you do plan to use 100% crops like this, it probably doesn't matter. As you noticed, nobody could see it at a normal size.

[mapgirl]

Originally Posted by dcclark

It also looks like the camera applied a bit much sharpening there, as well (or perhaps you sharpened it in post-processing). You can turn down your camera's sharpening a bit in its settings.

Aha! No, not the camera. I'm the culprit in post-processing. Clearly I need to read up more on the sharpening tools and when it's actually NOT a good idea to use them. Thank you!

And OsmosisStudios, I think I need to read up on noise-reduction too. I believe I used some but didn't see the problem until I was out of the RAW processing mode.

This was all very helpful. Thank you both.