unsharp mask vs. clarity. vs structure. vs. regualr sharpness, vs...

[Scatterbrained]

Depending on the scene I'll usually use either two high pass layers (one large radius and one small radius) or an inverted surface blur. A large radius high pass layer set to soft light is good for bringing the overall shapes of an image into crisp focus, while a small radius high pass layer set to vivid light, or hard light, will help bring out high frequency detail.
An inverted surface blur works similar to a high pass layer, but it shines in bringing shape and separation to details in shadow.

 

[JohnnyWrench]

Thank you for asking this question bribrius. This thread is gold!

 

[KmH]

A complete reply would require writing a book.

unsharp mask - controlling the size of edge halos for enhancing edge contrast - using Amount, Radius, and Threshold
Sharpening & Detail

• Understanding Sharpness
• Guide to Image Sharpening
• Sharpening Using the "Unsharp Mask" Tool
• Using Local Contrast Enhancement

vs. clarity - clarity is about mid-tone contrast at edges and elsewhere in a scene.
ACR Clarity slider - Bing
vs structure - I don't know what you are referring to.
vs. regualr [sic] sharpness - ie Accutance - See above links.
And - Camera Lens Quality MTF Resolution Contrast
Tutorials Sharpness

Photoshop Help
The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom CC / Lightroom 6 Book: The Complete Guide for Photographers
Adobe Photoshop CC for Photographers, 2014 Release: A professional image editor's guide to the creative use of Photoshop for the Macintosh and PC
Real World Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop, Camera Raw, and Lightroom (2nd Edition)
The Digital Negative: Raw Image Processing in Lightroom, Camera Raw, and Photoshop (2nd Edition)

 

[bribrius]

A complete reply would require writing a book.

unsharp mask - controlling the size of edge halos for enhancing edge contrast - using Amount, Radius, and Threshold
Sharpening & Detail

• Understanding Sharpness
• Guide to Image Sharpening
• Sharpening Using the "Unsharp Mask" Tool
• Using Local Contrast Enhancement

vs. clarity - clarity is about mid-tone contrast at edges and elsewhere in a scene.
ACR Clarity slider - Bing
vs structure - I don't know what you are referring to.
vs. regualr [sic] sharpness - ie Accutance - See above links.
And - Camera Lens Quality MTF Resolution Contrast
Tutorials Sharpness

Photoshop Help
The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom CC / Lightroom 6 Book: The Complete Guide for Photographers
Adobe Photoshop CC for Photographers, 2014 Release: A professional image editor's guide to the creative use of Photoshop for the Macintosh and PC
Real World Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop, Camera Raw, and Lightroom (2nd Edition)
The Digital Negative: Raw Image Processing in Lightroom, Camera Raw, and Photoshop (2nd Edition)

somewhat helpful, a few of the links are geared toward photoshop and lightroom. i have neither. closest i have is elements, but usually use capture nx2. Structure, i dont know what it is. it is in some of the nik collection, the google backup cloud editing programs i have and one of the off brand freeware programs. seems pretty much like clarity sort of. Thankyou for the response, much appreciated. It would probably be much easier if i had photoshop and lightroom, as it seems every else does it explaining might be easier and more tutorials seem available.