Sharpen image dialog box

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This dialog box controls the parameters used by the Sharpen command (New image menu).  As you change the parameters, The Panorama Factory shows you the effect interactively within the preview rectangle.

The Sharpen command sharpens images using unsharp masking.  This method locates areas of high contrast (edges) and increases the contrast to enhance edge sharpness.  This can help correct loss of sharpness introduced by scanning, printing and image sampling.

Amount (percent)
The amount of sharpening.  100% is a good starting point.  Larger values produce more a stronger sharpening effect and smaller values produce a more subtle sharpening effect.

Radius (pixels)
The size of the sharpening effect near edges.  Larger values are needed for high resolution images, but larger values can tend to create “halos” at edges.  When images are printed at high resolution, the effect is less noticeable.  Typically, a radius of 1 is appropriate for web display (computer displays are typically about 72 dpi).  For printing high resolution images, 2 or 3 may be a good starting point.  You may need to make test prints to determine the best value.

Threshold (levels)
The amount of difference between neighboring pixels that is needed to trigger the sharpening effect.  Setting a threshold can help avoid increasing noise in areas of low contrast.  A threshold of 5 is a good starting point, but you can use the preview display to decide what value works best.

Load settings from profile:
Select a profile from this dropdown list to load all settings that apply to the current tool dialog box.

Save settings to a profile...
Select this button to activate the Save settings to a profile dialog box.   You can save the current settings to an existing profile or create a new profile to hold the settings.

To learn more, see the Profile organizer dialog box and the Save settings to a profile dialog box in Chapter 14, “Dialog boxes.”