Posting photos that look good

[D. Bryant]

Another reason I sharpen my original image is because I've found it to give better results when spotting. On a number of occasions, I've spotted then sharpened, only to find new spots due to the sharpening. So I sharpen prior to spotting, which is now my final step before saving.

Tim

Spot first always prior to sharpening. If you are missing spots then roll back the sharpening and repair the spots as needed. Always use a non-destructive path when sharpening and preserve that as part of your archived file. Then final sharpen for output media and size. Don't apply ouput sharpening for archived images.

Don Bryant

[D. Bryant]

Joanna,
Tell me more about 96 dpi. Isn't 72 dpi standard?

72 dpi is a myth. To determine what dpi your monitor displays images divide the horizontal screen resoultion with the physical width of your display. That usually doesn't result in 72 dpi. IOW, 72 dpi isn't a standard.

Don Bryant

[Brian Ellis]

Joanna,
Tell me more about 96 dpi. Isn't 72 dpi standard?

72 hasn't been the standard for many years. Current monitors are around 100 - 110 or so I've been told by people who are supposed to know that kind of thing.

[Brian Ellis]

Could you tell me more about this bicubic sharper please? I've never used it, but it sounds interesting. I've always downsized using bicubic then applied USM to the degree I feel necessary. I like the control this allows me. Does Bicubic Sharper keep the exact same image sharpness/ ghosting/ etc of the pre-downsized image? This sounds like it could save me a step. . . .
Tim

Following is what I was taught while attending a Deke McLelland workshop a couple years ago. Bicubic Sharper is used as the name implies, to gain a small degree of additional sharpness. Since you presumably are starting with a photograph that's already been sharpened to your satisfaction, it should be unnecessary and may even be harmful to use Bicubic Sharper. Bicubic Smoother is used if the photograph has excessive noise. Plain old Bicubic is the one to use unless you have a specific problem you're trying to solve (i.e. you need a sharper image for some reason or the photograph has excessive noise). Never use Nearest Neighbor or Bicubic Linear, they're both useless. And ignore the editorial stuff that Photoshop says about using one method for enlarging and another for something else.

[Gary L. Quay]

72 hasn't been the standard for many years. Current monitors are around 100 - 110 or so I've been told by people who are supposed to know that kind of thing.

I tend to use 96 dpi. If it is a bit fuzzy at the largest size that Flickr will allow, that's OK. I don't want anyone to be able to copy one of my images and print it 8x10.

Thanks again for all of the help getting me online.

--Gary

[Brian Ellis]

"I'm still trying to figure layers out for some of this stuff. So far, I can't seem how to use the clone stamp, dodge and burn, or sharpen in a layer- I do the action, but nothing happens on the picture."

This is most likely caused by having the wrong layer active at the time you're using the tools.