My CS3 has arrived! What an amazing program! It seems pretty easy to use so far (even though I don't know much about what I'm doing). And Camera Raw and Bridge are easy to use too...so I'm very happy about my decision and thank you all for your input.
I was never happy with the sharpening using Elements 2.0, so I usually sharpened in Capture One (raw converter) which I know goes against most recommended workflows. So I just have a simple question now that I have CS3...
Once I convert the raw file (unsharpened), and am now adjusting the converted file in CS3, what settings do you use in unsharp mask? I know many are using Marc's sharpening technique, and I will begin using that at some point when I learn it...but my question is for sharpening an image for printing, not for the web.
With that said, is there any time you would sharpen the raw file in ACR before converting?
Thanks for your help. Hopefully I won't bug you with too many beginner questions!!
Fellow NPN member Reno DiTullio gave me this great tip for sharpening. It works for either the web or printing...
It is very useful for Web images, as well as for printing) because it virtually eliminates halos. The reason being that you are increasing the contrast between pixels, rather than colors. The procedure follows...
1. Open your sized RGB image.
2. Choose Layer>Flatten
3. Choose Image>Mode>Lab Color
4. In the Channels Pallet, choose the "Lightness" channel.
When you choose the 'Lightness' channel your image will revert to a very light B&W image. Don't worry.
Alice,
Asking someone what sharpening settings to use is like asking "what's your favorite color?". There are entire books, websites, and programs devoted to it. After taking the time to understand sharpening I found that this tool made my life a lot easier -
http://www.thelightsrightstudio.com/TLRSharpeningToolkit.htm
The author has done an amazing job of building some really good sharpening actions that have saved me lots of time.
BTW, along with Mark's sharpen for web technique, I recommend this action. Again, it's saved me lots of time.
http://news.deviantart.com/article/20250/
Have fun with Photoshop! I love it.
Paul
Thanks guys....but I just want some simple settings to get me started! I go into filter...sharpen...unsharp mask. Then it asks for amount, radius, and threshhold. I don't know what numbers to put in there...just want suggestions for a "usual" starting point if I want to print an image, not post on the web. Thanks!
Try Amount = 100, Radius = 1, Threshold = 2, as a baseline. Play around to see what looks good.
I've found that it's ok to get a slightly over-sharpened look on screen if you're going to print. The slight over-sharpening seems to make the print pop and doesn't effect print quality.
In order to use sharpening properly, you really have to understand what it's doing, or get some plug-ins that automate things. Have fun!
I just shot my first "real" bird and he needed a lot of rescuing; however, the technique you learned from Reno DiTullio and shared on this post has saved the day.
Discussion
6 repliesI was never happy with the sharpening using Elements 2.0, so I usually sharpened in Capture One (raw converter) which I know goes against most recommended workflows. So I just have a simple question now that I have CS3...
Once I convert the raw file (unsharpened), and am now adjusting the converted file in CS3, what settings do you use in unsharp mask? I know many are using Marc's sharpening technique, and I will begin using that at some point when I learn it...but my question is for sharpening an image for printing, not for the web.
With that said, is there any time you would sharpen the raw file in ACR before converting?
Thanks for your help. Hopefully I won't bug you with too many beginner questions!!
Fellow NPN member Reno DiTullio gave me this great tip for sharpening. It works for either the web or printing...
It is very useful for Web images, as well as for printing) because it virtually eliminates halos. The reason being that you are increasing the contrast between pixels, rather than colors. The procedure follows...
1. Open your sized RGB image.
2. Choose Layer>Flatten
3. Choose Image>Mode>Lab Color
4. In the Channels Pallet, choose the "Lightness" channel.
When you choose the 'Lightness' channel your image will revert to a very light B&W image. Don't worry.
5. Choose View>Actual Pixels
6. Choose Filter>Unsharp Mask
Settings for USM: Amount=85%, Radius=1, Threshold=4. Preview--Checked
If you need to apply more USM, press Ctrl-F to apply USM again. Repeat this step as necessary.
7. Choose Image>Mode>RGB to switch back to RGB color.
The 'flattening' of the image in step 2 is important; if you switch from RGB to Lab without doing so, some layers will be discarded.
You can use Ctrl-F in RGB mode for further sharpening if you need to, but this may cause halos.
This is a great technique, and it really takes less time to accomplish than to explain. Give it a try!
-PB
Asking someone what sharpening settings to use is like asking "what's your favorite color?". There are entire books, websites, and programs devoted to it. After taking the time to understand sharpening I found that this tool made my life a lot easier -
http://www.thelightsrightstudio.com/TLRSharpeningToolkit.htm
The author has done an amazing job of building some really good sharpening actions that have saved me lots of time.
BTW, along with Mark's sharpen for web technique, I recommend this action. Again, it's saved me lots of time.
http://news.deviantart.com/article/20250/
Have fun with Photoshop! I love it.
Paul
I've found that it's ok to get a slightly over-sharpened look on screen if you're going to print. The slight over-sharpening seems to make the print pop and doesn't effect print quality.
In order to use sharpening properly, you really have to understand what it's doing, or get some plug-ins that automate things. Have fun!
Thank you.
I just shot my first "real" bird and he needed a lot of rescuing; however, the technique you learned from Reno DiTullio and shared on this post has saved the day.
Thanks, again,
Carol