Almost anyone who has processed images has come to realize that the best way to do it is as the last step in the chain of changes to the image before publication. Also, most realize that the best way to do it is with the High Pass filter (Filter>Other>High Pass), and then changing the blend mode to Overlay, Soft light, etc. on a smart object nondestructively.

The problem though is that it’s laborious. It’s best done selectively to certain areas only, since applying one radius value to the entire picture results in haloes and sharpening where it shouldn’t be applied.

Now, Michael Woloszynowicz is giving away an action to apply ‘intelligent sharpening’, one which won’t result in haloes. Further, since it’s possible through this action (one for 8 bit and another for 16 bit color) to vary opacity, radius and threshold. This is the most control you can possibly get. The truth is that the 16 bit method takes a great deal of time unless you have a ton of RAM and a fast quad core.

You can watch his video here: http://youtu.be/mOHPQbyHbtI

And…happy sharpening!

Source:

http://www.vibrantshot.com/how-to-enhance-texture-and-detail-with-intelligent-high-pass-sharpening/