QTR-Quadtone RIP

> From: andreas_engi
>
> I read in the QTR-User-Guide that all formats(RGB or 16-bit grayscale)
> are converted into 8-Bit grayscale.8-bit is only 256 gradations of the
> brightness.
>
> I know that the Sources(Digicams) does not produce nothing at all
> better under normal conditions. But there is 14-bit
> Consumer Cameras on the Market now which can produce 16384 steps of
> luminance.
>
> My question: Is the bottle neck the printer-systems anyway? or why
> this limitation on 256 steps?

There is no camera that produces 14 bits of real data. In the best DSLR at
the lowest ISO, you'll be lucky to see more than ten. The rest is noise (and
marketing hype).

Bits beyond eight are important in capture, because you may need to apply
strong corrections to the image before use. But most printer drivers only
accept eight bits because, once an image is perfected, eight is enough to
represent the entire dynamic range that any inkjet printer can produce.
There is some evidence that a ninth bit may occasionally be useful for B&W,
under some circumstances, but certainly no more than that. With a true
continuous medium (as opposed to inkjet), and a very low-noise image, one
might be able to detect a tenth bit, but that's not what we're dealing with
here.

--

Ciao,               Paul D. DeRocco
Paul                mailto:pderocco@...