digital vs medium format

[BillDrew]

Originally Posted by Lin Evans

... Most professional level sensors are 12 bit (8 bit for consumer counterparts) level. ...

Would it be fair to then say that consumer digicams have an 8 stop range while pro sensors have a 12 stop range? Ignoring the fact (?) that digital has a sharp break at the highlights instead of a gradual "knee".

[Lin Evans]

Hi Bill,
I don't think that we could justify that conclusion. The additional four bits makes a tremendous difference in terms of the number of theoretical colors divisions within the spectrum possible to capture, but I don't think it has as much influence on the extremes as on the size of the discrete divisions within these extremes.

I find that 8-9 stops are warranted on low ISO captures with the better 12 bit sensors and 6-8 stops on the 8 bit sensors. Obviously, some are better and some or worse, but this seems to be a reasonable "guestimate" based on most measurements under fairly controlled conditions. You might visit dpReview where Mike Chaney (Qimage author) and Phil Askey (site owner) have conspired to get a handle on a way to better assess these measurements.

Lin