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What is sharpness setting on camera for?


tom_b.1

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On digital cameras (at least on the Pentax Optio 550/555)

there are 3 parameter to set in the menu for how photos are

taken (not counting resolution etc): sharpness, color saturation

and contrast.

 

I understand color saturation and contrast. I understand why I would

like to adjust them.

 

But I do not understand sharpness. Why would I like to set the

the sharpness to anything else than the sharpest?

If I want a softer picture I can use the soft filter.

The soft filter is easy to use, and I can be used both when taking

photos and when in playback mode to produce a soft copy.

 

If I take a sharp picture I can always use the soft filter in

the camera or a photo manipulation program on my computer to create

a softer copy. But if the original photograph is too soft, I cannot

manipulate it to create a sharper copy. Thus, I would conclude that

the sharpness should always be in the sharpest position.

 

However, it does not make sense for the manufacturer to include a

setting that should always be at one of the extreme positions.

 

My conclusion is that I do not understand the sharpness setting in

the menu system of the camera! What is it really?

 

Thank you in advance for enlightening me!

/Tom

 

P.S. I am waiting for delivery of the camera and have only read the

manual, so I have not been able to experiment with this setting.

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All digital imagining systems are inherently "soft" this has to do, as I understand it,

wit hboththe physics and mechanics of the imaging systems. What "sharpenign does

is to increase the differences the imaging processing software detects between the

edges of the pixels. A lot of sharpness is good for subjects that we mostly perceive as

hard edged --such as he dege of a building against a sky; and less sharpening is

wanted for subjects we perceive as smooth --such as skin.

 

My best advise is to shoot some tests of different subjects in different light and then

decide what works best for you.

 

My sharpening routine is to turn off all in camera sharpening, and then use a three

step sharpening routine (see <a href = http://www.pixelgenius.com> PhotoKit

Sharpener</a> in Photoshop: capture sharpening (which I set dependent on the

capture device -- scanners (and format) or cameras) Custom sharpening : which I'll

apply to the lips and eyes in the case of a portrait, but not tothe broad areas of skin.

And the final step is output sharpening which is tuned to the waythe image is goingto

be used: inkjet printing, on the web, in a magazine or brochure.

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Do I understand you correctly: The sharpness setting on the camera is

how much sharpening the digital image processing software in the

camera applies to the image from the sensor ?

 

In that case I understand the reason for the setting.

 

I thought it was the other way around: That the sharpness

setting of the camera was how much softening the digital image

processing software in the camera applies to the image from

the sensor.

 

And I could not figure out why you would like to do softening

as a default action on all photos taken.

 

(I understand that you want to soften some photos like portraits,

but I think that is better done in the digital darkroom, than

when first capturing the photo with the camera.)

 

Thanks,

 

/Tom

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<I>Do I understand you correctly: The sharpness setting on the camera is how much

sharpening the digital image processing software in the camera applies to the image

from the sensor ? </I><P>

Yes.<P>

 

 

<I> In that case I understand the reason for the setting. </I><P>

Good.<P>

 

 

 

<I>I thought it was the other way around: That the sharpness setting of the camera

was how much softening the digital image processing software in the camera applies

to the image from the sensor. </I><P>And you are incorrect in that

assumption.<P>

 

 

<I> And I could not figure out why you would like to do softening as a default action

on all photos taken. </I><P>It is my romantic sentimentalist Prussian Yiddish

Cossack soul (the sound of ancient call of the winds howling across the steppes from

the Volga

to the Elbe swirling down over the Danube is ingrained in my DNA and drives me

mad with schmaltz)

that commands me to do this. For this reason I also make sure all of my images have

a lovely rosey color tone and fuzzy borders.<P>

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I've experimented with several digital cameras, and found that normal works best. Usually when the photo is shot technically perfect, unsharp mask is purely optional when using photoshop. The photos are sharp enough even without the unsharp mask. When you set the cameras on highest sharpness/hard or whatever it might be called, things look terrible. They look blatantly digital. The definition lines are so thin that they almost overlap. Soft setting is okay too if you're planning on usually photoshop. Which is usually necessary with most digitals in my opinion.
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Hi Tom. The "sharpness" you can adjust in camera or in photoshop is really a subjective sharpness. Sharpening the image actually reduces the detail rather than increasing it (although unless you zoom 100% or 200% your <i>subjective</i> impression will be that of more detail). For this reason, the minimal sharpening setting will give you images that appear to be very soft but yet contain more information, meaning that you have more freedom to postprocess later. A very strong sharpening together with jpeg compression may lead to some bad artifacts in the image. These are the resons why you may not want the maximum sharpness.

<P>

I suggest using a moderate to normal sharpness setting, and then fine-tuning the sharpness using USM in PS (or any graphics editor). Regards, Pablo.

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