Hi Gregory and Verena Sava, Yes, I did use a sharpening function in photoscape. photoscape is a free software, however, its sharpening function is similar to the sharpening function in other programs. The sharpness in this picture (and many other pictures of mine) comes from several reasons. The key is focus stack. Focus stack allows us avoid using small aperture, meanwhile achieving the desired DOF. Using small aperture can lower the image resolution as well as the image sharpness. If interested, please refer to the following web address. Each link in this address has the analysis of sharpness vs aperture for a specific lens. I think all other existing lenses not listed have similar curves. The conclusion is that, if the aperture is too small, the sharpness drops down dramatically. http://coinimaging.com/Lens_tests.html Cheers, Jack