Over Sharpening On Web Images Solved!

[Ed Cordes]

About 2 years ago I posted a thread that indicated when switching to CS4 I seemed to develop oversharpened images when converting for web. The answer I recieved were constructive but did not solve the problem. My work flow was to take the fully processed TIFF and convert to sRBG, resize, and use PK Sharpen for web. After this I used the "Save for Web" function in PS.

All this has worked with excellent results in the past. When I started to have issues I omitted the PK Sharpening for web step with just OK results.

Now for the solution --- About the time I switched to CS4 I forgot that I also switched my defaults for resizing in PS. For enlarging I checked Bicubic Smoother and for reducing I checked Bicubic Sharper which is what PS suggests. Well when reducing for web PS Bicubic Sharper was adding way too much sharpening. I kind of discovered this by just all of a sudden having my brain realize exactly what the bicubic Sharper was doing. It takes a while for some things to penetrate my thick skull as my Mom always used to say.

I now have the default resizing in PS set to simply Bicubic (which was the original PS default) and again use PK Sharpening for web. I have much more control and I believe the results are much better.

I hope this helps others so you don't have to get as frustrated as I was.

[Axel Hildebrandt]

Thanks for sharing your work flow, Ed! I had to adjust some of my standard settings when I upgraded from CS4 to CS5 and ACR 5 to 6.

[Ray Rozema]

Thanks for the info

Ray Rozema

[Jonathan Ashton]

I see what you are doing but I am a little ignorant, what is PK please?

[Don Hamilton Jr.]

same here..PK??
Thks Don

[William Malacarne]

PK=PhotoKit Sharpener made by Pixel Genius.

Bill

[Steve Kaluski]

Doesn't USM work just as well in PS Ed?

I tend to find that each image requires a different amount of sharpening, the last two in the settings are standard ie Radius & Threshold for web. Likewise for hi res files & print work I vary the first figure, but the last two are standard, but not the same figures as web.

If that makes sense.:confused:

Steve :)

[Roger Clark]

Hi Ed,
Years ago I experimented with bicubic sharper and found it had too many side effects for my tastes. I have not used it since. I also found that images I made when I had a CRT monitor appeared over sharpened when viewed with an LCD monitor.

Roger