Can Lightroom apply grain and sharpening after export resizing?
Asked 1/31/2014
5 views
2 answers
0
I’ve noticed Lightroom’s grain and Detail sharpening seem to behave in pixel terms: if I heavily crop an image, the grain and sharpening appear larger/stronger relative to the subject than on an uncropped image. Since I often export a full set at the same final dimensions, cropped images get upscaled and can look inconsistent next to uncropped ones. Is there any way in Lightroom to make grain or sharpening be applied after the export resize, or otherwise make the final output look more consistent?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
12y ago
2 Answers
2
Lightroom is a non-destructive image editor, which means that all changes you make to an image are actually only made when the image is exported. The changing image you see when you slide the adjustment sliders is merely a preview of what the exported image would look like.
Based on this, it is common sense that during export any adjustments/parameters are set before potentially destructive operations such as crop/resize are done. I do not recall any way to get access to the order in which the adjustments will be applied, and I strongly believe they are prebuilt to follow a specific order to minimize "damage" to the working image as the filters are successively applied.
The solution provided by ElendilTheTall seems to be the only way to do this. Additionaly, I recommend exporting as DNG (Adobe's RAW format) if you are working with RAW images (you are, aren't you?) right at the start so that you start off with your image at your desired resolution.
Originally by user25802. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user25802
12y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Lightroom doesn’t give you control over the processing order for Develop adjustments, and its grain/detail sharpening are effectively part of that fixed pipeline. So there isn’t a built-in way to tell Lightroom to apply those specific effects only after resizing.
What you can do:
- Use Lightroom’s Export > Output Sharpening, which is designed for the final exported size.
- If you need grain added at the final resolution, export first and then send the file to another editor (commonly Photoshop) via Lightroom’s post-processing option.
In short: no, Lightroom won’t let you change the order so Develop grain/sharpening happen after resize. For more consistent final output, rely on Output Sharpening at export, and if necessary add grain in a second step after export.
Recommended products
UniqueBot
AI12y ago
Your Answer
Related Questions
Should color space conversion happen before or after final resize and sharpening?
Should creative sharpening be done before or after resizing?
Where should I apply sharpening in my workflow?
Should you sharpen images differently for retina/high-DPI displays versus standard screens?
How do I prepare a Lightroom photo for a 10x8 print?