Mother of God - D800 scores 95 DxOMark

[Gothmoth]

Reds are poor with defaults from ACR in some Canon models, but I found I can tweak settings and get detail without too much trouble.  For more troublesome color images, I use DPP, which usually nails the color.

x-rite colorchecker passport....

you can´t expect accurate colors without such tools in LR.
not from the presets that come with LR.

[smirkypants]

If I were you I'd settle for commenting on the area of photography that you do engage in.

You are correct. I don't shoot landscapes professionally, therefore I know nothing about composing or shooting one, and that I don't know anything about the tools that are best suited for the job. It also means since I don't shoot landscapes professionally, I don't have any friends that do and that they tell me nothing of their desires and observations. I'm just a monkey... with a 5D3... and a 1D4... oh, and a D4 on order.

[KeithR]

That means the D800 at ISO 200 is generating images as good as the 5D2 at ISO 100.

Wow - huge!

I do not believe for a moment that this is a game-changing or deal-breaking difference for anyone - it's just fodder for whiners.

Besides, at the risk of rolling out a hoary old cliché, it takes a damn' sight more a stop of DR more or less at low ISO to make the difference between a "good" and a "bad" image. I'd go as far as to bet that for 99.999% of users out there, it will make no practical difference whatsoever.

Seriously, it boils down to this: if an extra stop at base ISO really is "everything" to a photographer, then maybe the 5D Mk III is not for them: but I guarantee that the rest of the planet will be able to churn out spectacularly fine images in their millions with the 5D Mk III.


This forum is getting depressingly like DPR in terms of the obsession for measurebation over end results...

[briansquibb]

That sound.... that loud rumbling... it's the sound of a herd of Canon landscape photographers rushing to buy a D800 and a 14-24/2.8. It crushes on MP and it crushes on DR. It will happen, and all the defensive fanboy snottiness isn't going to change that.

I don't shoot landscape. The D800 is the wrong camera for me, but all the signs point to it being killer.

+1
agree 100%   

14.4 stops DR @ ISO 100 ... wow! Even if DXO-Marks intransparent testing was off by 2 stops, it would still best any Canon including 5D III by quite some margin.

I have been through my 1ds3 photos using DPP (which shows dr). The 1ds3 is tested at 12+ at 100iso. Most of my pictures dont go past 10 - so a d800 would be of no benefit (for DR). I print no bigger than 20x16 so I am coming to the conclusion that, yes, the D800 measures up in the lab but in the field it has no benefit to me.

For those DR fixated Nikon fanboys - other Nikons give higher than 12DR but they didn't capture the market.

For the serious landscape takers I would suggest something like a Mamiya MF 80mps to capture the  detail.

So here is a 10 stop DR picture for you taken at 100 iso, 25 seconds

[bvukich]

The first thread on this topic has already been deleted by the site admins... wonder how long this one will survive.

It will last as long as people remain civil adults.  When threads devolve to ad hominem attacks, that's when they go to the bit-bin.

You can attack the equipment all you want, cogent arguments are preferred, but the inane ones are tolerated.  Don't attack the people.

[elflord]

That means the D800 at ISO 200 is generating images as good as the 5D2 at ISO 100.

Wow - huge!

I do not believe for a moment that this is a game-changing or deal-breaking difference for anyone - it's just fodder for whiners.

Besides, at the risk of rolling out a hoary old cliché, it takes a damn' sight more a stop of DR more or less at low ISO to make the difference between a "good" and a "bad" image. I'd go as far as to bet that for 99.999% of users out there, it will make no practical difference whatsoever.

It's about 2-2.5 stops of difference in dynamic range at base ISO. The difference between SNR is smaller (more like 1 stop).

Not everyone needs the best sensor performance at low ISO, but let's not kid ourselves here -- the D800 sensor is a performer.

[AvTvM]

So here is a 10 stop DR picture for you taken at 100 iso, 25 seconds

Thanks, your picture proves my point very nicely. With a D800 and its 14.4 stops DR, there would be no clipped highlights on top of that broken wall bottom left.

re. MF cameras ... give me a break!
Nice thing about the D800 is: plenty resolution and plenty DR at ISO 100 ... and still excellent IQ at ISO 3200. Try this with a cludgy, expensive MF camera. And best of all: at a reasonable price of € 2600. I am not going to switch to FF any time soon, but if I had to today, I'd definitely get a D800.   

Now smite away fanboys ... oO .. no more smiting ... u'r out of luck now, hehe!

[KeithR]

Here's the problem with DxOMark. They say about themselves:

To design DxOMark Scores, we have made choices about our photographic use cases and their associated image quality requirements (such as resolution, distortion, noise, dynamic range, etc.). It is clear that other photography experts may see things differently. We are very open on this site about the choices we have made so that anyone interested in creating a different scoring system can do so based on their own analysis of our DxOMark Scores and Measurement Database.

They apply arbitrary - and by their own admission, completely subjective - scores to a series of metrics to end up with one number.

The issue is that if you don't give the same priority to the metrics that they do, the scores can be moved substantially.

The simple fact is that DxOMark's conclusions are no more objective than simply looking at the images and picking the one you like best.

[Gothmoth]

Now smite away fanboys ... oO .. no more smiting ... u'r out of luck now, hehe!

yes we need an ignore button instead of smiting.... 

[KeithR]

It's about 2-2.5 stops of difference in dynamic range at base ISO. The difference between SNR is smaller (more like 1 stop).

Oh I know - I was just focusing on the specific 100 ISO/200 ISO reference in the earlier post for simplicity.

Not everyone needs the best sensor performance at low ISO, but let's not kid ourselves here -- the D800 sensor is a performer.

No denying that - the issue here is whether DxOMark has "proved" that it's superior to the 5D Mk III to the extent that some folk on here seem to have bought into.

[Ricku]

Amusing fanboys are amusing.

The D800 turns out to be a better camera than the 5D3. It gets an amazing score from DxO, and the Canon fanboys reacts like: "Meh, who cares about DxO?! better camera does not make u better photographer! Canon power!!!1"

But if the 5D3 had the same score or higher, they would all be cheering and shouting: "OMG! Look at that fat DxO score! OUR CAMERA IS WINNER!! Take that, Nikon!" 

[sawsedge]

Here's the problem with DxOMark. They say about themselves:

To design DxOMark Scores, we have made choices about our photographic use cases and their associated image quality requirements (such as resolution, distortion, noise, dynamic range, etc.). It is clear that other photography experts may see things differently. We are very open on this site about the choices we have made so that anyone interested in creating a different scoring system can do so based on their own analysis of our DxOMark Scores and Measurement Database.

They apply arbitrary - and by their own admission, completely subjective - scores to a series of metrics to end up with one number.

The issue is that if you don't give the same priority to the metrics that they do, the scores can be moved substantially.

The simple fact is that DxOMark's conclusions are no more objective than simply looking at the images and picking the one you like best.

Thank you for pointing this out.

[sparda79]

"OMG! Look at that fat DxO score! OUR CAMERA IS WINNER!! Take that, Nikon!"

Funny... because I actually saw several comments like this on Nikon Rumors 

[EYEONE]

So here is a 10 stop DR picture for you taken at 100 iso, 25 seconds

Thanks, your picture proves my point very nicely. With a D800 and its 14.4 stops DR, there would be no clipped highlights on top of that broken wall bottom left.

I really don't think that part of the picture is clipped. It's just bright.

[sawsedge]

How many of you used slide film back in the day?