Practice question · Select all that apply
Which are true of bit depth and linear encoding?
Hints
- Three concern how finely the range is divided; one confuses that with how wide the range is.
- Bit depth is about resolution of tone, not about reach.
Show the answer
- B. In a 14-bit file spanning fourteen stops, the brightest stop takes half the available levels
- C. Editing a file in 8 bits leaves less headroom for large tonal moves than editing in 16
- D. An 8-bit channel holds 256 levels and a 14-bit channel holds 16384
Why
The fourth conflates two things. Dynamic range is set by the sensor's full-well capacity against its noise floor; bit depth only decides how finely that range is sliced. More bits over the same range means smoother gradients, not more shadow detail than the sensor could see.
Practise Digital Capture and the Input-Output Chain
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