An elf has a highly analytical mind (I think of int as that at least), so he is far more adept at learning new ways to do something, and also seeing what does not work at its optimum rate. And he would be forced to excel and improve his technique because he is so less naturally gifted that he can not rely on raw talent to survive.

But even as he masters it, his physical attributes will limit what he can achieve compared to say a giant.

A giant of far less intelligence is not as keenly going to develop/refine their technique, but more just randomly stumble on to them. That the less refined technique is more effective for them means they'd have less reason to care about improving it, and their lower intelligence would make it all the harder for them to figure out how to.