Quote (Vivienne @ Jul 18 2012 05:41pm)
how to?
Tried a few low transparency sharpened layers but that doesn't seem to work particularly well - The most quality loss seems for me to come from using transparent layers to change tone/add effect etc.
Its not easy to make low quality stock images and or renders look better then how they went in, in most cases you would use some preset blur sharpen combos. or you could use Topaz vivacity (which, its a shame that most abuse this tool... it can be used for good.)
So more or less, be aware when choosing renders to look for large high quality images. and if you start to see that something you are doing is distorting the image, learn from it and find out how better to get the desired effect with out ruining your work.