Need an expert opinion

[dhphotonef]

Ok so I have been shooting raw for years and years now and i am absolutely aware of the benefits of flexibility that provides when editing. but I am revisiting old shots that were shot JPG and I actually want to include a few on my site. I hate that they were captured in JPG! but my question is, what is the best way to edit a JPG image without it being destructive? i know that there has already been sharpening applied so is there a way I can sharpen without it looking crunchy? does anyone have any tips at all for salvaging quality and making the photos look...not so JPEG-y?

 

[Piccell]

Most software has non destructive editing these days. I know Photopaint from Corel does this.
When you save as a jpg use a lossless format and use the save options and check things like encoding and use the 'run optimizer' check box if your software offers this feature.

 

[Ysarex]

JPEG/destructive/nondestructive:
You can use a parametric editor like LightRoom which will preserve the original and output a new file for the edit. You can do the same by working with a copy of the JPEG and never touching the original.

However: All JPEG editing is destructive by definition. Your goal then is to do the least amount of harm in editing. The JPEG file format is an archive format designed NOT to be edited. As you alter any of the image parameters, tone, color, sharpness you begin to uncover the compression grid which becomes visible. This is an issue of application and degree. Light editing will typically do more good than harm and usage for the final image, if not taxing (viewed on phone screen), will smooth over the damage done. Heavier usage (large print) will unfortunately show the damage and there really is nothing other than extensive and tedious retouching that can ameliorate the damage.

Careful tool selection and application in Photoshop will help and there's no magic that can undo the harm already done.

Joe

 

[Piccell]

...and pay attention to your chroma subsampling, it is important to keep colors as close to actual colors as you can.