Reader comment and question on Making Sharp Images
Reader Mark M emails to say:
Wanted to say thank you very much for the excellent and incredibly useful Making Sharp Images (and DAP that I also subscribe too).
The subscription was a Christmas present and is worth every penny. Everything that I've read is being put to good use with my D7000, especially the sections regarding MLU with remote release (a first as my previous camera was a D50) and the sections regarding restoring sharpness.
If you have time could you consider the following question:
Your settings for Capture Sharpening using deconvolution in ACR do indeed bring out detail lost to the AA filter, but (even with the amount value lowered to 20-30 or so), it produces a fine noise/grain visible in my images (at 100% view) that I do not see within your examples. This is present on images that have been ETTR with a UNI-WB file so underexposure is not the issue. I wonder if perhaps the settings would need to be different for the D7000 sensor but playing with the sliders has not revealed a suitable result. I have tried backing off the amount as you suggest and applying Smart Sharpen, but that just amplifies the fine grain/noise that I am seeing. I really like the idea of using deconvolution sharpening for my Capture Sharpening but so far no joy! Is this something you have experienced and are there any settings you could recommend? Perhaps this method of capture sharpening is not suitable for crop sensors?
Many thanks again for the excellent resources, in this age of internet 'experts' on every forum board out there, your precise and well researched info is invaluable.
DIGLLOYD: Deconvolution sharpening can be more of a problem for cameras with higher noise levels, but using a Masking value of 20-30 can greatly reduce the grainy look that comes with deconvolution sharpening in ACR. Some photographers making fine-art prints actually prefer a slight grain to the images, which can also paradoxically increase the impression of sharpness. Always err on the side of less sharpening during RAW conversion, as extra sharpening can be applied to a version of the image prepped for printing.
