Whats up with my Smugmug created images?

[dashphotography]

I'm trying to figure out why my uploaded pictures on Smugmug, after smugmug creates smaller visions to view...look so bad? It looks like there is too much sharpening going on with the versions smugmug creates, or they are not being saved as high quality web images?? I'll see if I can post an example. I decided to try out www.imageevent (http://www.imageevent) and I posted a few of the same pics I have in my smugmug gallery to compare what they look like. Can someone tell me what is going on with the smugmug created pics?

(In the comparison pull up both windows and tab back and forth to look at the differences. Pay attention to the face mask, face, and in the 2nd example the screws and name tape on the helmet)

Smugmug
http://dashphotography.smugmug.com/gallery/361093/2/14356878/Large

Image Event
http://imageevent.com/dashphotography/dawson?p=1&n=1&m=18&c=4&l=0&w=4&s=0&z=3


Smugmug
http://dashphotography.smugmug.com/gallery/361093/2/14355632/Large

Image Event
http://imageevent.com/dashphotography/dawson?p=0&w=4&n=1&c=4&m=18&s=0&y=1&z=3&l=0
Thanks, Shawn.

[GREAPER]

I am sure other people will respond, but I looked at the shots, and I gotta tell ya, the ones on smugmug look better to me. The other site they look a touch soft to me. Maybe it's a matter of personal taste.

[DavidTO]

I'd say the biggest difference I see is that the black background doesn't conflict as much with the image as the white. It's easier on the eye.

Beyond that, I can't tell because any difference I see could be caused by that alone.

[patch29]

I'd say the biggest difference I see is that the black background doesn't conflict as much with the image as the white. It's easier on the eye.

Beyond that, I can't tell because any difference I see could be caused by that alone.

You can swap the background to white on smugmug if you want.

[dashphotography]

I can see big differences in the face mask and the amount of haloing that is taking place with the smugmug image. I just read another thread that smugmug sharpens???? all of the downsampled versions before creating them. I shoot a Canon 20D with minimal sharpening turned on in the camera (shoot jpegs), I do a little more sharpening in Photoshop CS as I'm preparing the image. It's fine that smugmug does not sharpen my original...but if they are sharpening again when they create a web image then essentially my image has been sharpened 3 times. I think my images may look a little softer in my test on image event but I think the ones there do not have as much distortion on the metal grid and screws on the face mask. It appears there is no way to turn off sharpening that smugmug does?

When smugmug saves my image for web...what quality or compression are they saving the smaller versions at? Image Event allows you to set the following yourself under global options:

Compression of created jpegs:
Highest
Normal
Low
Lowest

The compression of the ones in the test were set at normal. I'm assuming if I set them both to Lowest that the quality would be even better...but load slower of course.

I'd say the biggest difference I see is that the black background doesn't conflict as much with the image as the white. It's easier on the eye.

Beyond that, I can't tell because any difference I see could be caused by that alone.

[Andy]

sorry, i can't see a huge difference. they look good to me! have you checked your monitor calibration?

[Baldy]

I can see big differences in the face mask and the amount of haloing that is taking place with the smugmug image. I just read another thread that smugmug sharpens????I took the liberty of downloading your photos and opening them in Photoshop, expanding them to 400%, etc. I think what you're seeing is the effect of the unsharp mask we use. I didn't seem to be able to see much difference in compression artifacts.

We do apply gentle unsharp mask (20%) because any time you downsample an image you lose sharpness. The amount we apply is intended to bring it back as close as possible to the original.

In our taste tests we find that unsharp mask is subjective, but generally nearly 100% of consumers prefer the shots with gentle unsharp mask. With pros, the percentage is not as high but you can definitely sit 6 pros down at the table and have them prefer several different levels. Generally, portrait photographers like the least.

So, I'm starting to sense that you're one whose tastes run towards a softer look and I'm sorry we don't have a setting so you can pick the adjustment you prefer.

Thanks,
Baldy