will47 Loc: Indianapolis, IN

I haven't had a chance to try this yet but I'm looking for comments. In a discussion with a friend today he said he gets excellent sharpening results by removing the sharpening that is applied in ACR after downloading a photo. In other words after downloading he turns the sharpening to zero and continues on from there. As I have said I haven't tried it yet, but does this make any sense to you? Thanks.

Ysarex Loc: St. Louis

I assume downloading means opening the photo in ACR after copying it from the camera or camera card? If the photo is going into ACR then I assume it's a raw file? So then in ACR your friend removes the standard input sharpening that ACR applies by default and instead does __________________? Sharpens or not the photo? In Photoshop? How?

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Sounds logical if no "additional" sharpening is needed for the original image.
Maybe akin to over sharpening, depending on the level that is set?

Why would one assume that all images would benefit from x amount of sharpening across the board?

will47 Loc: Indianapolis, IN

If I remember correctly either hi-pass or smart sharpen.. I use hi-pass and I think he said he used both of those depending on the image (not at the same time, one or the other).

Ysarex Loc: St. Louis

OK, so your friend prefers the sharpening available in PS as opposed to the sharpening provided by ACR. ACR doesn't offer a choice in sharpening methodology. Photoshop has unsharp mask, smart sharpen and you can set up high pass sharpening. Some other standard options are RL sharpening and frequency sharpening and then there's proprietary options from the various processing apps out there. Choose what you like.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

I believe that's the key operator here.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

I use a variety of sharpening strategies including adjusting the sharpening, texture clarity and actual sharpening, radius detail and masking in Lightroom. Then when in Photoshop, I use either hi pass or a two stage approach with unsharp mask - first I adjust with a large radius and a small amount to address microcontrast and medium frequency detail, followed by a small radius and a very large amount to address the fine detail and texture. Every image is different so the approach I take corresponds to image content. Generally all raw files require sharpening unless there is no detail or you have a creative intent that will not be helped by sharpening.

R.G. Loc: Scotland

That sounds roughly similar to what you'd get if you used the Masking slider in ACR. The objective is to keep the sharpening away from the noise and to apply it where it's needed (the edges of the main shapes plus some for small detail). If there are textures that need accentuating they can be treated separately using a brush (or some other form of selection) and basic sharpening. That may be not quite as effective as Gene51's two stage process but considering how easy and simple it is there's a lot to be said for it.

Juy Loc: Delaware

I would think that if you keep the sharpening down before making adjustments and some noise cancelling you would get cleaner image. If you sharpen first the you are applying sharpen to the noise edges make it more apparent. Clean up the image then sharpen to keep from exaggerating the noise???

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Sensors with anti-aliasing filters generate soft images. Sharpening can help compensate for that..

gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast

Perhaps the problem is that a lot of people, myself included, don’t really know what sharpening is or what types of compositions benefit from it. I tend to use it to enhance what I see as contrast in an image but I’m not sure if that is what it’s major benefit is.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

I modify "sharpening" in post if desired.

saxman71 Loc: Wenatchee

That is an interesting two stage approach. I plan to give it a try. Thank you for laying it out Gene. For me, being rather lazy, I tend to sharpen most of my images as the last step in ACR. The masking slider in ACR is important and it took me a long time to understand its function. But it does really help mask out the sharpening effects where sharpening is not needed in the image.

Ysarex Loc: St. Louis

The thing about sharpening is it should always be tailored to use. In other words for any given photo you should sharpen using method X and Y amount if you're going to print the image 8 X 10 on glossy paper. While on the other hand you should sharpen using method Z and A amount if you're going to post the image on the Internet. While on the other hand you should sharpen using method B and C amount if you're going to print the image 16 X 20 on matt paper. While on the other hand..... etc.

Sharpening of an RGB raster image isn't reversible so make sure you get it right. Don't over or under sharpen based on your intended use. What if you want to use the image in more than one way?

So our industry has adopted a methodology to address the issue of how do we sharpen if we don't know the future use of the image and/or want to have it available for multiple uses: Three step sharpening.

Step one: Input or deconvolution sharpening sometimes called capture sharpening. This is applied with a restrained hand when the raw file is processed. This is the sharpening applied in the Detail Panel in LR or ACR. This one is camera hardware specific as different input sharpening is appropriate if your camera does or does not have an AA filter over the sensor. It can be camera specific if you have a Fuji X camera with an non-bayer CFA. You can trust the engineers who programed your raw processing software or you can lift the hood and tweak the settings yourself.

Step two: Local or select sharpening. This is sharpening applied beyond input sharpening to enhance detailed regions or objects in the scene. For example don't further sharpen clouds in the sky as all you're doing is adding noise but do sharpen rocks on the lake shore. Still this is applied with a restrained hand since it's general and we don't yet have a determined application for the photo. In LR this is done with the adjustment brush. In Photoshop there are multiple methods to achieve this.

Step three: Output sharpening. Here's the final sharpening step that is tailored to the photo's use: print, screen, print medium, etc. This is typically applied globally to the image and is often a setting selectable in the export process of an editing application. In LR for example output sharpening is selectable in the export settings. In Photoshop it's up to you to decide how and how much. A lot of folks at this stage rely on ancillary plug-ins to complete this step like software from Topaz.

NOTE: Probably this should be said first but it should also goes without saying that there's no software substitute for a sharp lens on the camera properly used.

It's all complicated enough and with variations for different software apps and everyone's personal preferences that it merits a book: https://www.amazon.com/World-Sharpening-Photoshop-Camera-Lightroom/dp/0321637550

joer Loc: Colorado/Illinois

I don't use ACR since switching to Capture One. More often than not I allow the default setting and adjust detail using structure plus or minus if needed.