Any Colour You Like So Long As It's Black (And White)!

[Alex1994]

Some interesting rumours here about the next Leica announcement due on 10 May:-
http://leicarumors.com/

[P_Stoddart]

Trying to figure out what is gained by a pure B&W sensor? Massive DR?

My understanding is photo editing software can already take advantage of the DR of colour sensors anyway.

I have read on other forum posts that the human eye can only pick around 256 level of tone anyway in a print.

[beejaybee]

Trying to figure out what is gained by a pure B&W sensor?

Twice the resolution, in the red and blue layers of the image, and about 1.4 times the resolution in the green layer, for the same pixel count. No need for a blur filter to spread the light around over the Bayer matrix. Ability to work with narrowband monochromatic filters, or broad bandpass "colour" filters, from some way into the ultra violet to some way into the infra red. And you can still make colour images, if the subject will stay still enough for you to take three images using red, green and blue colour seperation filters ... or false colour images, using three different filters (possibly narrowband monochromatic filters) and mapping the images onto red, green and blue for display or printing.

All those wonderful "colour" shots from the Hubble Space Telescope ... made with monochrome cameras.

One shot colour cameras really do have severe limitations, redeemed only by the ease of producing straightforward colour images.

[beejaybee]

I have read on other forum posts that the human eye can only pick around 256 level of tone anyway in a print.

That's irrelevant; applying tone mapping can map far more than 8 stops of dynamic range onto a 256 level printed / displayed scale, and much of the dynamic range is thrown away if you use the sensor above its "native" speed anyway. The native speed of camera sensors is around 100 ISO; even the ones that can be pushed to 1000 times that.

But monochrome sensors are essentially the same as one-shot-colour sensors with a different anti-alias / blur filter and the Bayer filter matric stripped away. The dynamic range is the same; usually 12 or 14 bits. They may be more efficient at photon capture but that has no effect on the dynamic range.

[bagpuss]

**want**

[P_Stoddart]

That's irrelevant; applying tone mapping can map far more than 8 stops of dynamic range onto a 256 level printed / displayed scale, and much of the dynamic range is thrown away if you use the sensor above its "native" speed anyway. The native speed of camera sensors is around 100 ISO; even the ones that can be pushed to 1000 times that.

But monochrome sensors are essentially the same as one-shot-colour sensors with a different anti-alias / blur filter and the Bayer filter matric stripped away. The dynamic range is the same; usually 12 or 14 bits. They may be more efficient at photon capture but that has no effect on the dynamic range.

So would you say that there is nothing to gain or very little? I mean colour FF sensor are already quite high res.

[Alex1994]

I don't understand the technicalities, but Phase One do a monochrome back, and there's a review of it here:
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/re...hromatic.shtml

And leicarumors.com have a shed load of 'possible' Leica announcements for May 10th!

[beejaybee]

I don't understand the technicalities, but Phase One do a monochrome back

Query, a Phase One back modified for monochrome? And it's immensely expensive. Dedicated "large sensor" astro cameras are very, very much cheaper, you could buy half a dozen of these for the same money and not have to pay import duty either.

[Alex1994]

I won't buy one now!

[Brian]

And next will be that ISO is limited to 400ASA and the memory card holds 36 exposures.................................wonderfu l.

[gollum]

And next will be that ISO is limited to 400ASA and the memory card holds 36 exposures.................................wonderfu l.

Works for me