Digital BW, The Print

Austin,

Well stated.

I think some of the misunderstandings arise over confusions about 
what dynamic range is being discussed. Each point in the process has 
its own dynamic range. The original scene, the image on the film, the 
light input to the scanner's sensor(s), the voltage output from the 
sensor(s), the output at the A/D converter, the output from the 
scanner to the computer, the final print itself. Likewise you can 
combine any number of these steps and talk about the dynamic range of 
that segment of the process.

It is important to define exactly what dynamic range is being 
discussed. Which brings us back to the very beginning of the current 
discussion. Logic would assume that when a scanner manufacturer 
claims a certain dynamic range for their product is would be the DR 
for the segment of the process spanning the image input to the 
scanner through what is actually transferred to the computer. In 
practice it appears that the claims made have little to do with the 
function of the scanning process as a whole but rather pick the 
subsection of the process that will give the highest number for 
marketing purposes.
 
Martin Wesley



--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@y..., "Austin Franklin" 
<darkroom@i...> wrote:
> There have been claims made that dynamic range and bit depth are not
> related.  That is not true.  They absolutely ARE related, and this 
explains
> why.
> 
(Snip)