Camera
Dynamic Range
The range of brightness a camera can capture in a single exposure, from the darkest shadow detail to the brightest highlight before either goes completely black or completely white. Measured in stops; higher is better.
Dynamic range describes the span of light levels a camera sensor can record in a single exposure. At one end is the darkest tone the sensor can distinguish from solid black — the noise floor. At the other end is the brightest tone before the sensor clips to pure white — the saturation point. The gap between these two extremes, measured in stops, is the dynamic range. A scene with strong contrast between deep shadows and bright highlights requires a wide dynamic range to capture detail in both simultaneously.
Dynamic range matters most in high-contrast lighting situations: direct sunlight with deep shade, a window in a dark room, a subject backlit by sky. When the dynamic range of the scene exceeds the camera's capability, the photographer must choose which end to sacrifice — either blow out the highlights or lose shadow detail. Cameras with wider dynamic range allow more of the scene to be captured correctly in a single frame, reducing the need for HDR techniques or compromised exposure choices.
In video, dynamic range determines how much latitude the footage has for colour grading. Cameras that shoot in log formats — V-Log L on Panasonic, or the log mode on Blackmagic cameras shooting BRAW — preserve more tonal information by encoding the image in a flat, low-contrast curve that can be expanded in post-production. The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K claims 13 stops of dynamic range in BRAW mode. The GH7 and G9 II shooting V-Log L typically measure around 12 to 13 stops in tests. Standard JPEG or video shooting without a log profile uses far less of the available dynamic range.