On Wed, Mar 17, 2010 at 09:56:11AM -0700, Larry Colen wrote: > > Another post processing question that's been niggling at me. Is there > any reason that a program like lightroom couldn't do binning, and turn > 14MP K20 files into 7MP files with twice the dynamic range?
Yes - the laws of physics. Two 14-bit pixels binned together give you one 15-bit pixel (with a 7% theoretical maximum improvement in dynamic range), not a 28-bit pixel. But, of course, you don't even do that well. Binning n pixels together doesn't give you a factor of n improvement in signal-to-noise ratio; you only get a factor of sqrt(n). So only half the extra bits you gain are signal. The way to get extra dynamic range is to do what Fuji do on their "super sensor"; it has some pixels that are less sensitive than others, so a bin contains a regular pixel (for normal use) and another pixel for highlights. Presumably, since those sensors haven't taken over the marketplace, there are other issues that have to be weighted against increased dynamic range, -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
