Why Dynamic Range is NOT Tonal Range
Now, it could be…but it’s not
It’s like a square is a rectangle but a rectangle is not a square…so let’s explore this
I recently was reading an article explaining dynamic range, in it, the author went on to explain when a camera has a limited dynamic range it will only show shades of gray not black and white. And I thought, no, that’s limited tonal range, not dynamic range.
Most everything we use in photography has a Full Tonal Range when lit with the same constant light source
- Our Eyes; can see the full tonal range from Black to White
- A High End Camera; can reproduce the full tonal range from Black to White
- A Low End Consumer Camera; can reproduce the full tonal range from Black to White
- Most decent LCD Monitors: Can produce a full range of tones from Black to White
- Most Better Photo Printers: Can produce a NEAR full range of tones from black to white (Limited by Paper white {DMin} and Black Ink (DMax} )
