Posted by Steve Sieren on October 8, 2008 at 2:00 AM
Was wondering if anyone has a good technique for sharpening a file that will be printed 16x24 and 13x19?
I'm currently using a couple of methods smart sharpen tool and also using Fred Miranda's sharpening for the 5D seperately of course. Haven't decided on which I like better but probably will by the end of the night.
Steve, I find that sharpening requirements change with each image and are dependent on lens, contrast, etc. I don't think there's such a thing as sharpening for a given camera that will work in every situation.
TLR is offering a great set of Photoshop scripts for sharpening which gives you a lot of flexibility. I recommend it:
I recently started using PK Sharpener and have been extremely impressed with the results (I previously used regular old USM in PS, done by eye). You can download a trial version of PK Sharpener for free if you want to try it on a few images. I think the full version costs $99, which might be worth it if you make a few prints a year.
It took me about 30 mins. to become familiar with this program and it is fairly easy and intuitive to learn. The thing I like the most are the final sharpening scripts that are based on the size of your output file. Takes a lot of the guesswork out, especially for those of us that print infrequently.
Jason
Posted by John Mumaw on October 8, 2008 at 6:38 PM
The TLR toolkit that Guy recommends does about the exact same routine as PK Sharpener, and is free.
I also use and highly recommend it.
Posted by Paul DeCesare on October 8, 2008 at 9:57 PM
But for kicks, try a two-pass USM:
First at 1.2 Radius, 125%, 0 Threshold.
THEN before you print, do a second pass of .4 Radius, 90%, 2 Threshold.
I've done this after reading Tim Grey's eBook on Sharpening and it seems to bode well for scenics that have texture (rocks, foreground grass, etc).
These numbers aren't etched in stone, just a point to start. For printing inkjet it seems to work best when the image onscreen looks about 10-15% more sharpened that it should. This makes up for ink spread. If you're doing super glossy, back off a bit on the "oversharpening for print".
Posted by Steve Sieren on October 9, 2008 at 12:03 PM
Discussion
5 repliesI'm currently using a couple of methods smart sharpen tool and also using Fred Miranda's sharpening for the 5D seperately of course. Haven't decided on which I like better but probably will by the end of the night.
TLR is offering a great set of Photoshop scripts for sharpening which gives you a lot of flexibility. I recommend it:
http://thelightsright.com/TLRProfessionalSharpeningToolkit.htm
Guy
It took me about 30 mins. to become familiar with this program and it is fairly easy and intuitive to learn. The thing I like the most are the final sharpening scripts that are based on the size of your output file. Takes a lot of the guesswork out, especially for those of us that print infrequently.
Jason
I also use and highly recommend it.
First at 1.2 Radius, 125%, 0 Threshold.
THEN before you print, do a second pass of .4 Radius, 90%, 2 Threshold.
I've done this after reading Tim Grey's eBook on Sharpening and it seems to bode well for scenics that have texture (rocks, foreground grass, etc).
These numbers aren't etched in stone, just a point to start. For printing inkjet it seems to work best when the image onscreen looks about 10-15% more sharpened that it should. This makes up for ink spread. If you're doing super glossy, back off a bit on the "oversharpening for print".