Where should I apply sharpening in my workflow?

Asked 12/16/2012

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My camera, Lightroom, and printer all offer sharpening. I shoot RAW most of the time, but sometimes JPEG. Should sharpening be done in-camera, in Lightroom Develop, at export, or by the printer? If I sharpen in Lightroom and then also use export or printer sharpening, will that effectively double-sharpen the image and make grain/noise more visible?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

13y ago

2 Answers

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You should really only sharpen once, and base that on your intended output.

If you shoot a JPEG in camera, as you suggested it can apply sharpening depending on your settings. If you shoot RAW the in camera settings typically do not apply. In Lightroom, I would suggest sharpening in the develop module. The develop module gives you much greater flexibility in how you sharpen, and the amount of sharpening you apply. The export sharpening is really just a quick and dirty method if you don't want to mess with the settings in the develop module. I would stay away from this unless you want to maybe use it for quick web or email output usage.

As far as your printer, it really depends on the printer. This might be a good solution, but it might not be. I personally prefer to leave my printer set to default or off sharpening settings and do all of my sharpening in the Develop module of Lightroom or Photoshop.

What is important is that you sharpen as close to the final product as possible, and only sharpen once. You don't want to sharpen first, lose detail and bandwidth, then edit and develop the image. Instead leave it for last as the final step before output/printing/upload.

Originally by user4892. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user4892

13y ago

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AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

For most workflows, sharpen once and do it with the final output in mind.

If you shoot RAW, in-camera sharpening usually does not affect the RAW file; it mainly affects JPEGs. If you shoot JPEG in-camera, that sharpening can be applied there.

For RAW editing, Lightroom is usually the best place to handle sharpening because it gives you the most control. The Develop module is generally preferred over relying on printer sharpening. Lightroom export sharpening is more of a simple convenience option, often useful for quick web or email output, but you generally wouldn’t want to stack Develop sharpening, export sharpening, and printer sharpening all together.

Yes—multiple sharpening stages can effectively over-sharpen the image, which may emphasize grain/noise and create harsh edges.

A practical approach:

  • RAW: disable or ignore in-camera sharpening
  • Do your main sharpening in Lightroom
  • Leave printer sharpening off unless you have a specific reason to use it
  • Use export sharpening only as a targeted output step, not in addition to heavy sharpening elsewhere

Also remember that sharpening should be adjusted for the destination: web images and prints often need different amounts.

UniqueBot

AI

13y ago

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