Other Methods for Sharpening

Other Methods for Sharpening

Learn how to sharpen photos in Photoshop using an Unsharp Mask. 

When to use

The Unsharp Mask is most useful when you want to apply uniform sharpening to a photo. 

Instructions

Getting Started

• Begin by opening one of the three landscape photos that we have been working with.
• Create a copy of your layer, or merge your existing layers into a new copy at the top of your Layers Palette by pressing Command/Ctrl+Alt/Option+Shift+E.
• Hold the Control Key and click on the newly merged layer and then choose 'Convert to Smart Object'. 

Applying the Unsharp Mask

• Go to the Filter Menu and choose 'Sharpen > Unsharp Mask' from the list.
• Once the Unsharp Mask dialog box appears, make sure to check off the 'Preview' box so you can see the effect in real-time.
• Change the Amount to somewhere around '112'.
• Change the Radius to about '20'.
• Change the Threshold to '30-35'.
• Click 'OK' to apply the Unsharp Mask.
• Repeat this on your other photos, and toggle the visibility of the effect on and off to see the difference.

Hints & tips

• Using Smart Filters is a great non-destructive way to work because you can always double-click on the filter to modify the settings.
• You can add multiple Smart Filters to a Smart Object to stack and combine effects.
• You can use the mask that is created when a Smart Filter is applied to hide parts of the image where you don't want the effects to appear.