Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1997/09/01
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]>Perhaps also you like the crispness that I find in some lens, especially >Canon. Qualitatively, it is what I call brittle sharpness. It looks >artificial. The Leicas don't always look so sharp, but there is a depth >to them that I like. Like I can see through the frame into the photo. Donal, One characteristic of what you call "brittle sharpness" is the way soft textures, like human hair or a fuzzy sweater, are rendered. The hair looks really detailed, and you can see individual strands, but they are so artificially sharp that they look like fine wires instead of hairs. You don't get the subjective impression that the mass of hair would be soft if you could touch it. If all you care about is sharpness, you would be thrilled. I'd prefer the textures to look more realistic. Since almost all images now get scanned and are digitally processed, this same effect can happen if the image is over-sharpened. If you don't sharpen enough, the image can look mushy when reproduced, but some people get seduced by seeing all of the small details pop out and get heavy handed with it. - - Paul